April 9, 2008
“He was a wonderful man and a gentle soul,” said Dick Bristow, executive vice president of the Associated General Contractors of Washington. “He spent a lot of time with the organization.”
Bristow said he had known Bocek since the late 1970s and had traveled on a few overseas AGC trips with him and his wife, Clarice.
Bocek was born in Aberdeen on Oct. 20, 1924. He graduated from Aberdeen's Weatherwax High School and later earned a bachelor's degree in mechanical engineering from the University of Washington.
After college, Bocek joined his father, Paul, and brother, Robert, in construction. They formed Paul Bocek and Sons, which later became Bocek Brothers Construction Co. The brothers built many public works projects, including roads, highways and bridges.
David Bocek, Don's only son, said his father was most proud of the company's involvement in the construction of Interstate 5 through Seattle. Bocek Brothers did excavation work for that project, sometimes running two and three crews around the clock, according to David. It was that job that brought Don to the Seattle area.
David joined his father in the construction business in 1981. The company continued to do dirt work, but also developed single-family lots.
Father and son decided to become full-time developers in 1989 and sold their construction equipment. They developed single-family lots and commercial properties.
David said his father liked to say: “We used to contract to stay busy and develop land to make money.”
(Editor's note: The above paragraph has been changed to fix a typographical error.)
David said his dad was an honest man. “He would make sure anything he started would be finished at any cost.”
Don Bocek didn't golf or belong to any country clubs; the AGC was his club. He served as the Seattle Chapter president in 1984 and helped create and run the AGC Education Foundation. He received the Contractor of the Year award in 1977 and the AGC Lifetime Achievement award in 2006. He was inducted into the UW's Construction Hall of Fame in 2002.
Bocek retired in 1989, but remained active in the business and AGC. For the AGC, he was a board member, served on the scholarship selection committee for the Education Foundation and judged the Construction Excellence Awards.
He suffered a stroke but was still able to visit the office several times this year. “He never really retired,” David said.
In addition to his son, Bocek is survived by his wife, five daughters, 18 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
Donations may be made in Bocek's honor to the UW Foundation or the AGC Education Foundation.
Benjamin Minnick can be
reached by email or by phone
at (206) 622-8272.
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