Henry Melvin Houghtaling died May 23 at Island Hospital in Anacortes at the age of 95. He was born Sept. 19, 1919, in Bellingham to Thomas and Faye Houghtaling.

“Hank,” as he was known to his friends, was raised in Lynden and Custer, Wash., but moved with his family to Coupeville. He graduated from Coupeville High School in 1938.

Hank enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1938 and served during WWII. He was married to the former Doris Hammons in Greenbank on July 14, 1941. He left the service for a time but was recalled for Korea. The Army assigned him as the Sgt.-in-Charge at the submarine monitoring station at Greenbank and took them to Fort Lewis; Fort Warden; Suquamish; Poulsbo; Tooele, Utah; Germany; and, finally, to Hermiston, Ore. He remained in the Army reserves until retirement, leaving the service as the Provost Marshall of the Munitions Depot in Hermiston, in January of 1964 as a Major.

Hank returned to Whidbey, working for Shepard Chevrolet for a time and then for the Oak Harbor Sears store. Hank decided to work for himself and purchased the Shell gas station on Pioneer and 60th NW. He later built a new station on Midway, which he operated until selling the store to his son Cliff. He also opened the Midway Tire Shop across from the station and eventually became a Polaris Snow Mobile dealer.

Hank sold his business interests and became a commercial fisherman. He and Doris commercial fished and crabbed off of Whidbey and also at LaPush and southeast Alaska. They were residents of Mariners Cove for many years before moving to Anacortes in 2000. Hank enjoyed gardening, fishing and hunting.

Hank was a member of the Whidby Island Lodge #15 F&AM, the Oak Harbor Yacht Club of which he served as Commodore for two years, the Whidbey Deception Pass Boat Club, the Shrine, the Shriner’s Mini Bike Club and the Military Officers Retirement Association.

Henry Houghtaling is survived by his wife of 74 years, Doris; one daughter, Sharon, and husband, Jim Nielson; by one grandson, Cliff Houghtaling Jr. of Oak Harbor; one granddaughter, Denise Cole, and husband, Kermit, of Olympia; one daughter-in-law, Penny Houghtaling of Oak Harbor; and by his siblings Esther Gabelein of Bayview, Bill Houghtaling of Seattle, Al Houghtaling of San Diego, Tommy Houghtaling of Florida and Claude Houghtaling of Mattawa, Wash. He was preceded in death by one son, Cliff, and two sisters, Hazel Williams and Harriet Clark.

Hank requested no formal funeral services be conducted. A cremation was held with private family interment to follow at a later date. Please visit Hank’s page in the Book of Memories at www.wallinfuneralhome.com to share memories or condolences. Arrangements are entrusted to Wallin Funeral Home and Cremation, Oak Harbor.