Reverend Allen G. Ingebritsen (Pastor Al) passed peacefully on Dec. 19, 2016. He was the son of Vern Ingebritsen and Alice Lundquist Ingebritsen.

He is survived by his loving wife, Linda Ingebritsen; son and daughter-in-law David and Laurie Ingebritsen; daughter Sonja Ingebritsen; daughter and son-in-law Karyn and Roy Gomez; grandchildren Katrina and Miguel Gomez; granddaughter and grandson-in-law Aana and Hector Palacios; sisters Caryl Harris and Ann Taylor; and brother Jim Ingebritsen. He was welcomed home by his two daughters, Jeannie and Joan, who were stillborn in 1955; his parents; sister Marie Ormsby; and many other relatives and friends.

Allen was born in Moscow, Idaho, on Dec. 11, 1929, at Gritman Memorial Hospital. He was proud of being one of the first children born at Gritman. He began work on his family’s dairy farm at an early age, and learned to drive the farm truck at age 9. Allen graduated from Moscow High School and the University of Idaho. He was in ROTC and majored in agriculture, studying to be a soil scientist. He and Linda met at what was then Faith Lutheran Church in Moscow while they were both attending the university. They married on June 16, 1951.

Allen served in the Air Force as a 2nd lieutenant in Japan during the Korean War. Following an honorable discharge, he worked for International Harvester before going to Augustana Seminary in Rock Island, Ill. Allen began his ministry as a parish pastor at Faith Lutheran Church in Roseburg, Ore., in 1959. He subsequently served St. John’s Lutheran Church in Lakewood, Wash., and Grace Lutheran Church in Spokane, Wash. At Grace, he and volunteer Sharon Rector of Bethlehem Lutheran developed a Summer Program of Enrichment and Recreation (Project SPEAR) for low-income children in the neighborhood surrounding the church. The program continues to this day through the dedication of many volunteers and support of several congregations. He ended his congregational ministry at Mt. Cross Lutheran Church in University Place, Wash. From there, Allen completed Clinical Pastoral Education and entered the chaplaincy. He retired as a chaplain from Good Samaritan Hospital in Puyallup, Wash., at the age of 62. He and Linda moved to Rockford Bay, near Coeur d’Alene, Idaho. They enjoyed several years at the lake before moving to the Good Samaritan campus in Greenacres, Wash.

Allen and Linda had a wall-hanging that read, “You have touched me; I have grown.” These words aptly describe Allen’s way of being. He served God with grace and humility. It is fitting that Allen passed during the Christmas season when we celebrate the special gift of Jesus to the world. Allen embodied Jesus in his life, and this wondrous season he has been given the gift of going at last to his eternal home to be with the Savior he loved. The family extends a special thank you to the staff of Good Samaritan, who daily provided loving care to him during his many years of illness.

A memorial service will be held at 1 p.m. Saturday, Dec. 31, 2016, at the Community Center at Good Samaritan retirement community, 17028 E. Eighth Ave., Spokane Valley, WA 99016.

In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial gifts be donated to either Project SPEAR (P.O. Box 4033, Spokane, WA 99220) or Camp Lutherhaven (3258 W. Lutherhaven Road, Coeur d’Alene, ID 83814), two ministries close to Allen’s heart.