Obituary

Stanley Wayne Rudig was called home by our Heavenly Father on April 16, 2024. He passed away at his home after a brief illness surrounded by his loved ones. He was 83 years old.

Stan was born in Griswold, Iowa to Emma Josephine (Rawlings) and Albert Leon Rudig on September 18, 1940 and was the youngest of seven children. He graduated Griswold High School in 1958 and was a talented athlete who lettered in football, basketball and track.

He met and married Jadene Rose Bridger in 1965 and together they not only welcomed three daughters, he became a stepfather as well. They moved from Iowa to Washington in 1974 and raised their girls in the beautiful Pacific Northwest. They had many happy years together, weathering life’s ups and down, until Jadene unexpectedly passed away in June 1991.

In 1995, he met Kristi Holmwall and they were married in December of that year. Kristi and Stan built a loving home together where everyone was always welcomed with a smile. They loved spending time together and shared many interests, including cooking, NASCAR, music, watching history documentaries and just being peaceful at home. They never wavered in their love and devotion for each other, and she was by his side until his last breath.

Stan was an incredibly hardworking man. He was a long-haul truck driver covering most of the lower 48 states. This brought him to Washington to drive for LTI during the construction of the Alaska Pipeline. He stepped out of trucking to work at Intalco, retiring in 2001, but “retiring” was never his style, so he went to work for Canyon Industries, not only making deliveries, but making friends every place he went. His charm, engaging smile and contagious laugh will never be forgotten.

Stanley, known as “Stan the Man” was a country boy at heart and passionate about many things; family, friends, his shop, his dog, music (especially Dolly Parton), gardening, keeping his lawn PGA ready and most of all BBQing and smoking many varieties of meat. He is a legend when it comes to curing and smoking meats and took great pride and pleasure in staying up all night to make sure everything was “just right”. If you were lucky enough to have it once, you’ll never forget it. A major highlight in Stan’s later years, was attending the Frank Hawley Drag Racing School in Las Vegas. He was 78 years old and “schooled” the young kids on day one! He was a proud patriot and loved his country deeply and took great pride in his family’s military history.

Most of all, Stan loved to tell stories and laugh, and he had the best laugh; it came from his entire body, and one couldn’t help but laugh around him. That will be missed most of all – his incredible and completely genuine laugh.

He is survived by his wife, Kristi Rudig, his daughters Becki Rudig (Richard New), Joy Constant (Yancey Constant), Staci Rudig and Teri Ferguson and his grandchildren; Danielle, Spenser, Gabe, Wyatt, Heather and Brooke and his great grandchildren: Rogun, Cedar, Pierce, Kayce, Josh and Danielle and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

He is preceded in death by his wife Jadene Rudig, his parents Albert and Emma Rudig, sisters Anna Mae Courcier and Yvonne Richards, brothers Albert Rudig, Jr., Dale Rudig, Richard Rudig and Dennis Rudig, granddaughter Kelli Ferguson and several other loved ones.

Those of us left behind know how lucky we were to have known this man and have him in our lives. Remember his huge and giving heart, the laughter, the smile, his charm and twinkle in his eye. One of his favorite quotes was from Michael Landon, “Remember me with smiles and laughter, for that is how I will remember you. If you can only remember me with tears, then don’t remember me at all.”

A celebration of life will be held at the Deming Log Show Museum on June 22nd, 2024, at 1 pm. All of Stan’s family and friends are invited to come and share the things he always wanted to be around: Good people, good food, good stories, friendship, love and most of all laughter.

Godspeed sweet man. Godspeed. We’ll see you on the other side.