Obituary of Larry C. Shannon

Larry C. Shannon lived a good long life and found it satisfying. Despite knowing sorrow in his later years, he maintained his cheerful tone. Shannon, 86, was a retired Olympia lawyer and in recent years had cared for his ailing wife, Rosemary, in the family home. He liked consistency and relished his routines, including daily visits with his wife after she moved in 2008 to an adult family home that specializes in dementia care. His legal career included work with the Legislative Council until a governor's budget veto eliminated the office in the early 1960s. He later opened a private law practice that dealt with real-estate and estate matters and spent 30 years lobbying the state Legislature on behalf of the Washington Mortgage Bankers Association. He transitioned into retirement in the early 1990s. Shannon was born Feb. 18, 1924, in Aberdeen to J.E. "Gene" Shannon and Irene Marie Norquist. His father owned the Shannon Lumber and Shingle Co. until the Great Depression, and his mother was a school teacher who also taught piano to help the family scrape by during the hard times. Larry and his older brother Robert were standout tennis players, ruling Grays Harbor's high school tennis courts for seven years. Larry graduated from Weatherwax High School in 1942, then enrolled at Washington State College in Pullman. His education was cut short by World War II. He was drafted into the Army and served as a military policeman and later as a radioman in Alaska. Using the GI Bill, he attended the College of Puget Sound in Tacoma, earning a degree in political science, and later received a law degree from the University of Washington in Seattle. In 1948, he married Rosemary Grant in Aberdeen, having dated her since high school. The couple raised two sons, and Rosemary worked for many years as his legal secretary. Shannon was a free thinker. He put his trust in the rule of law and lived his belief in personal self-control. He was a political independent and even-keeled man who kept his opinion to himself unless asked to share it. But he spoke with quiet rage before the unprovoked U.S. invasion of Iraq. He said he understood how Germans must have felt in the 1930s – as he put it – "powerless to stop their leaders from going to war.'' Shannon's time outside work and raising a family were spent in recreational pursuits. He and his wife took periodic vacations to Hawaii. He played tennis late into his life and enjoyed tending his yard and growing fruits. Shannon died July 18 at Providence Mother Joseph Care Center after battling three bouts of pneumonia since February. He made a steady effort during the spring and early summer to regain health and return to an independent life. This never came about; he accepted this reality with dignity and without complaint. He is survived by his wife, Rosemary, in Tumwater; also by his eldest son Brad Shannon, daughter-in-law Virginia Painter Shannon, and grandson Jonah M. Shannon, all of Thurston County; brother Robert E. Shannon and his wife Dorothy Shannon of Bellevue; nephew Todd Shannon and nieces Jennifer Shannon and Donna Shannon, all in King County. Larry Shannon was preceded in death by his second son, Kevin Scott Shannon, in 2003. The morning wind spreads its fresh smell We must get up and take that in That wind that lets us live Breathe before it's gone - Rumi You may leave memories and condolences by clicking on "View Guestbook" below.