James Richard Friedman

Gig Harbor resident for 44 years, Jim Friedman passed away on April 29, 2025 at the age of 77. He is survived by his wife of 42 years, Lin Spellman, two children, Micah Spellman (Nicole), Jeremy Friedman (Ilana), seven grandchildren, Roey, Nitai, Orianna, Zev, and Shea Friedman, Bastian and Caspian Spellman, and a brother Paul Friedman (Liz), and his twin sister, Linda Friedman.

Jim was born May 23rd, 1947 to Charlotte and Cecil Friedman. Not aware of a climate alternative, Jim spent the first 24 years of his life in Buffalo, New York graduating from the University of Buffalo with a degree in History and briefly teaching in the Buffalo public schools. At 24, Jim got his driver’s license, left Buffalo and ended up in Tucson, Arizona where he attended graduate school at the University of Arizona earning his masters in Educational Counseling. Once again in search of a climate alternative, Jim made his way to the Pacific Northwest and lured by his wife to be, Lin, eventually moved to Tacoma, Washington, where his father had been born and raised.

Jim was a bureaucrat extraordinaire. He spent his career working hard on behalf of the disenfranchised. He started out working for the YWCA and the Emergency Food Network and then went on to work primarily for the Washington State Department of Social and Health Services (DSHS), as a caseworker, social worker supervisor, state-wide program manager of a chemical dependency treatment program, and a regional administrator. He retired at the end of 2010 from a management position at Olympic College. Also, for 20 years, he co-taught Personal Growth workshops at Chemeketa Community College in Salem, Oregon.

In Jim’s retirement, he accompanied his wife on many adventures around the world eventually preferring to stay home enjoying being by the water, reading, watching old sitcoms, movie going, and volunteering. Spending time in Seaside by the ocean was also a favorite.

Jim liked to think of himself as a pragmatic optimist. Therefore in his retirement, instead of starting a support group for recovering bureaucrats, he stayed involved in the community. Jim served numerous years on the Temple Beth El Board of Trustees. He was twice president and served as chair of several key committees focusing on inclusion and sustainability. He also was in a leadership role for many years on the Home of Peace Cemetery board. A champion of diversity and tolerance, he joined the board Associated Ministries in three different decades. Saying no was just not in his repertoire. So many fundraising campaigns and projects depended on his efforts. Volunteering was the favorite chapter of his life and one which would reap the greatest impact on the community.

Always entertaining, Jim’s easy-going approach to getting the job done was colored with a positive sense of humor and smile. His jokes traversed many levels from awful to very clever. The most important treasures in his life included Lin, his wife, his two sons and two daughters-in-law, who he cherished as daughters. He adored his grandchildren, and they adored him.

Jim said he wants each of us to remember that by working together, we continue to improve our community. And whenever you hear or tell an awful joke or pun that makes someone smile or groan, you are carrying on a Friedman tradition!

The funeral service will be held at Temple Beth El at 2 pm on Friday, May 2, 2025. Donations may be made to the Temple Beth El General Fund or any other cause you hold dear.