Arthur “Jay” McQuatters Jr. died on May 1, 2018 at home in Hermiston at the age of 83 after a brief battle with lung cancer.
He was born on Jan. 25, 1935 in Portland to Arthur and Myrna McQuatters.
When he was a young boy, the family moved to Hermiston and raised turkeys on the east side of town in the Spearman Road area. He and older sister Ann attended the Columbia School and Hermiston High School.
Jay joined the Army in 1951 and was honorably discharged in 1953. He returned to Hermiston and married MaryAnn MacDonald, and they welcomed daughter Sheryl in 1955. His work as a regional truck driver took him all over Oregon and Washington, and in 1957 the family moved to Southern California, where he began to work as a long-haul trucker. In 1963, following the birth of daughter Marla, the family relocated to Bellevue, Wash. Shortly after the move, Jay and MaryAnn divorced after 10 years of marriage.
Jay married Lorna Hubert in 1965, and they lived in the Seattle and Midway-Des Moines area for many years. Along with Lorna’s daughter Kay, the family welcomed daughter Dawn Marie in 1965. A rapid onset of labor resulted in an emergency birth, with Jay delivering Dawn at home. Jay was a proud father to his four girls. He told many high-spirited tales about his youth, and often stated how thankful he was to have girls, not boys.
Jay pursued many interests during the course of his life. As a youth, he roamed Umatilla County on horseback and was a deckhand on the Captain Al James, a tugboat that plied the Columbia River. He raced cars in Southern California. He had a lifelong love of boating and fishing, particularly in Alaska, British Columbia and the Puget Sound.
Being a long-haul trucker took Jay all across the U.S. and Canada. When he retired from Dallas & Mavis Trucking in 1995, he had logged 5.5 million miles of safe driving. Most of his remaining years were spent in Hermiston and in Skagway, Alaska with his daughters. He will be remembered for his striking blue eyes, his sharp wit and keen observations, his love of family, his amazing stories and adventures, and his big personality. He often said, “I’ve lived more lifetimes than most people live in one, and I’ve had a great life.”
Jay is survived by his sister, Ann Thomas of Selah, Wash.; daughter and son-in-law, Sheryl and Si Dennis of Skagway, Alaska; daughter and son-in-law, Marla McQuatters and Joe Brusberg of Hermiston; daughter and son-in-law, Kay and Scott Hodges of Tacoma, Wash; daughter, Dawn Thompson of Sulphur Springs, Texas; 12 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren.
In accordance with Jay’s wishes, he was cremated at Burns Mortuary, and the family will gather at a later time to release his ashes in the Puget Sound at Point No Point, and in Skagway, Alaska at the end of the Lynn Canal.
Please sign the online condolence book at burnsmortuaryhermiston.com.
Burns Mortuary of Hermiston is in care of arrangements.
