lit a candle 6h agoMy wife read this out to me over breakfast, the bit about surveying bridges for twenty six years and still building houses after. Sixty two years married is its own achievement. Never met the man, never been to Spokane, but that sort of steady life deserves a line somewhere.
Their story
Larry Arnold Simmons was a Spokane, Washington builder, surveyor and family man whose life was marked by decades of steady, hands on work and a long marriage that stood at the center of his identity. He was not a public figure in the national sense, and no Wikipedia page or…
Larry Arnold Simmons was a Spokane, Washington builder, surveyor and family man whose life was marked by decades of steady, hands on work and a long marriage that stood at the center of his identity. He was not a public figure in the national sense, and no Wikipedia page or wide media coverage exists for him. What is known about his life comes from the obituary published by his family through the Spokesman-Review and Pacific NW Cremation of North Spokane, and this page relies on that record, stating plainly where details beyond it are not publicly available.
Simmons was born on January 30, 1943, in Spokane, where he grew up and met Kay Kreager, who became his wife. Larry and Kay were married for 62 years, a partnership that ran through both their home life and their working life together. He served six years in the Army National Guard, a commitment that preceded a long civilian career spent in public service. For about twenty six and a half years he worked as a surveyor for the Spokane County Engineers, helping to map and inspect the bridges and roads that carried the region's traffic.
After leaving his county job, Simmons did not step away from work. He became a general contractor, building custom and spec homes across Spokane and into North Idaho, often working side by side with Kay, who shared the business with him. According to his family, the homes he built, like his marriage, were made to last. Outside of work, Simmons was known for a love of the outdoors. He hunted with his son Jim and daughter in law Stacy, fished, camped, took up woodworking, worked on cars, and in his younger years competed in triathlons.
Simmons died on September 16, 2026, at the age of 83. His family's obituary, published through the Spokesman-Review, describes him going home to be with his Lord and Savior, framing his death within the Christian faith that shaped his life. No cause of death has been made public, and this page will be updated if one is disclosed. He is survived by his wife Kay, his children Jim and Jackie and their spouses, six grandchildren, four grandsons the family describes as adopted, seven great-grandchildren, and two sisters, along with nieces and nephews.
A celebration of life is scheduled for Saturday, November 7, 2026, at New Creation Fellowship in Spokane, where family and friends are expected to gather to remember a man whose working life was built on precision and whose home life was built on devotion.
Biography adapted from News reports and the sources cited on this page; death reported by Legacy | Obituary.
Agreed, the ones who just keep showing up to the work rarely get written about enough.