Leon Sams passed peacefully into the loving presence of Jesus, his Lord and Savior, on April 4 ^th , 2023 surrounded by his family. Leon was born July 19 ^th , 1941 in Chicago, Illinois to Lafayette and Mary "Kathryn" (McDearmon) Sams. Leon is reunited with his wife of 58 years, Marylee Sams in heaven. She was his best friend and the love of his life. Leon is survived by their 3 children, Chris, Jennifer, Marybeth, daughter-in-law Shelli Sams and son-in-laws Brian Larson and Jim Sande. He also took great pride in his grandchildren Collin, Braden, and Logan Sams; Leif and Julia Larson; Jack, Jacob, and Joseph Sande. Leon is also survived by sister, Donna Sams, sister-in-law Kathy Johnson and niece Kari McPhail, and nephews Mike and Mark Johnson.

Leon grew up in a Christian home where faith in Jesus and work ethic were highly valued. His family was active at Fourth Memorial Church where he accepted Christ, taught Sunday School, and developed a love for teaching. He was a great storyteller and would tell how his dad, Lafayette, witnessed to other workers on the railroad to the point of getting into fisticuffs, how he hot-rodded cars in high school, and how he built a ham radio and laid the antenna across the basement floor in Spokane to talk with a cattle rancher in Argentina. His family moved from Chicago to Bremerton, and when Leon was 5 years old, they settled in Spokane in 1946. From an early age, Leon developed a fascination with radio and broadcasting.  He worked hard to pass the tests to achieve his ham radio license. His call sign was W7CEZ (whisky-7-charlie-echo-zulu). He worked at KXLY TV station in Spokane during his teen years.

Leon graduated from North Central High School in 1959. After a brief stint at Multnomah School of the Bible, he attended Whitworth College graduating with a bachelor's in business and management in 1964. At Whitworth he met his perfect match, Marylee Severson. They met at a homecoming assembly where Marylee was being honored as a Homecoming Princess and Leon was tasked with introducing her. Marylee & Leon were married in 1964 at Messiah Lutheran Church in Spokane and they honeymooned at Warm Beach which was their favorite spot in the world.

Leon and Marylee moved to Texas after Leon was drafted into the Army on Christmas Day of 1965. While serving in the Army, Leon built a giant rhombus antenna to enable communication with troops in Vietnam. When he was discharged from the service his commanding officer filled up a U-Haul full of electronic equipment that Leon used to build many ham radio projects over the years.

Leon and Marylee moved back to Spokane in 1968 and Leon went back to Whitworth where he earned a bachelor's in education in 1968. Marylee and Leon were blessed with 3 kids: Chris, Jennifer, and Marybeth. Leon became a schoolteacher in Spokane's District 81 where he loved teaching at Browne and Wilson Elementary.  He delighted students, leading them on fossil digs, making movies, building electric motors, and launching model rockets. He went to night school at Whitworth and earned a Master of Arts in Education in 1976. Marylee and Leon bought property at Warm Beach in 1977 where they camped as a family for two months every summer. Leon was awarded Teacher of the Year in 1985 at Wilson School and the Golden Acorn Award in 1986. In 1986, God paved the way for them to move from Spokane to Warm Beach where they built the home of their dreams. Their home has always been filled with family and celebrations. Leon was glad to be working behind the scenes at Marylee's direction to ensure everything was just right, from the BBQ to the yard, to outfitting King Neptune on the mud flats.  Leon worked to make people feel welcome.

In Stanwood, Leon was active at work and with their church. He taught the Challenge Class and was Assistant Principal at Stanwood Middle School from 1986 – 1990 and was the Principal at Stanwood Elementary until 1997 when he retired. In retirement, he mentored and evaluated student teachers and volunteered at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church. At Our Saviour's he enjoyed working on the sound system, championing support for pipe organ music to worship God, and he served as council president.

Leon's family was especially important to him, and to his grandkids he was a beloved 'Bestefar' (Norwegian for grandpa). He loved having fires on the beach, walking on the mud flats with his grandkids, eating fried oysters, socializing with neighbors, and working on projects around their house. He emphasized the importance of reading Scripture regularly and modeling faith in Jesus in our day-to-day actions. During the last several years Leon lived out his faith and faithfulness by always being at Marylee's side. Leon personified what it means to be a faithful husband, dad, and Bestefar.

A Memorial Service (Celebration of his Life) will be held at Our Saviour's Lutheran Church in Stanwood on April 29 ^th at 1pm with a reception following. In lieu of flowers or gifts, donations may be made to the Marylee and Leon Sams Scholarship Fund through the Stanwood Camano Area Foundation, PO Box 1209, Stanwood, WA 98292 or www.s-caf.org