Henry Eugene Suprunowski

Henry Eugene, “Gene” passed away at Tacoma General Hospital at the age of 96 on September 20, 2024. He was born on March 23, 1928 in South Pekin, Illinois the fourth son to William Henry and Sarah May (Martin) Suprunowski. He ventured out to the Pacific Northwest at the age of 16 with the encouragement of his brother Carl who was serving in the US Army at Ft Lewis. Henry lived with his uncle Charlie’s family in Seattle until graduating from Ballard High School on June 12, 1946. He entered the Marines two days later and served the next 7 years, retiring as Technical Sargent in 1953. His stints included time in China and two years working in Guatemala with the US Ambassador to Guatemala and as a guard at the US Embassy. He attended Washington State University for 2 years with an interest in law enforcement and around this time, met the love of his life, Irene Christensen in Pt Orchard where they married in 1956. They later moved to north Tacoma where they raised 4 children.

Henry had an eventful and storied career with the Pierce County Sheriff’s Department which he joined in 1959 as a patrol deputy. Known to his work friends as “Ski” or “Super” he rose through the ranks to homicide detective and later retired in 1980 as Chief Criminal Deputy. During his time as detective in the 60’s and 70’s, he solved many horrific murders some of which were featured in Master Detective magazine and Ann Rule true crime novels. During his tenure, he received many honorary awards including one from State Attorney General, Slade Gordon for National law enforcement officer of the month. A superior was once quoted in the Tacoma New Tribune, “because of his relentless determination and devotion, he seldom had a case that wasn’t cleared”.

Industrious and resourceful, he built a family cabin at North Cove, Washington where we all enjoyed the ocean beach and clam digging. Later, he purchased a cabin on Harstine Island which became a family gathering place. He loved to hunt and fish and enjoyed many outings with his sons, Bill and John and grandson, Bill Junior. Dad had a green thumb when it came to growing tomatoes and we never understood how he could grow such an abundant crop year after year. He enjoyed the simple things in life, including sitting down with family to share a meal and chat and always looked forward to attending the Sons of Norway pancake breakfasts with his kids, grandkids and great grandkids over the years. At the ripe old age of 80 years, he decided to become baptized and a member of Emmanuel Lutheran Church in Tacoma. His spiritual journey was no doubt influenced by mom’s faith in God and mission work through the years.

We are so very proud to have had this amazing man in our lives. He was loving, kind and incredibly generous. We will miss his welcoming smile, friendly chuckle and words of encouragement. He was preceded in death by his wife, Irene, his 3 brothers, Carl, Leo and Rex and his son, Bill. He is survived by daughters, Jean (Ron) Bone and Janet Suprunowski and son, John (Karen) Suprunowski, nine grandchildren and nine great grandchildren. Respecting his wishes, there will not be a formal funeral service. In lieu of flowers, please give to the Salvation Army or your favorite charity.