Civic leader, attorney, mentor, philanthropist, loving father and grandfather Irwin L. Treiger passed away Sunday, October 20, after a brief illness. He was 79.
Irwin was born to immigrant parents Sam and Rose Treiger on September 10, 1934, and attended Horace Mann School, Seattle Talmud Torah, and Garfield High School before enrolling in college and law school at the University of Washington. Over his 56-year law career Irwin worked with Bogle & Gates, Dorsey & Whitney, and Stoel Rives, where he served as counsel until his death. According to his children, Karen, Louis, and Ken Treiger, all of Seattle, Irwin had planned to retire in a year, after he turned 80.
Not only was Irwin listed in Best Lawyers in America from 1983 to 2013, he was involved with myriad tax, law, arts, and Jewish organizations. Irwin was a trustee of the Samis Foundation, the Rotary Club of Seattle, and the Washington State Historical Society, and he served as president of the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle, the Jewish Transcript, the Seattle Symphony Foundation, the Seattle Hebrew Academy, the Northwest Foundation, and the Corporate Council for the Arts. He served as director of the King County Multiple Sclerosis Society and the Seattle Day Nursery Association, and chaired numerous boards, including The Seattle Foundation and the Greater Seattle Chamber of Commerce. May 27, 1997 was named “Irwin Treiger Day” by then-Governor Gary Locke.
Between 500 and 600 friends, family members, community leaders, co-workers and admirers came to Irwin’s funeral Monday at the Nordstrom Recital Hall at Benaroya Hall.
“In thinking of words associated with my father, I came up with so many: Loving husband, father, grandfather, attorney, baseball fan, friend, colleague, mentor, leader, historian, poet, patron,” said Irwin’s daughter Karen Treiger in her eulogy. “He was honest, moral, smart, witty, open-hearted. A lover of cigars, dogs, Tanqueray, books, the internal revenue code, Israel and tradition — all kinds of traditions, but especially his Jewish tradition.”
Irwin was also the subject of many humorous stories involving a longtime battle with Lake Washington geese and an inability to grasp technology, including cell phones.
Personal reflections on Irwin’s life by people who knew him well show a man who was kind, impeccably honest, giving, and driven.
“He taught,” Karen Treiger told JTNews, “but he taught mostly by being a role model.”
“I feel a huge loss,” said his son, Ken Treiger. “I feel homesick now, because he’s not here.”
Irwin is survived by his wife and “angel” of 56 years, Betty Lou; his brother Ray (Nancy) Treiger; his sister- and brother-in-law Jackie and Alvin Goldfarb; children Louis (Bayla), Karen (Shlomo Goldberg), and Ken (Lauren Antonoff); and nine grandchildren. Donations may be made to the Jewish Federation of Greater Seattle or to the charity of your choice.
Irwin Treiger: 1934-2013
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Sorry to hear about the lost of this great man. I worked in the admin dept for Bogle and Gates in the the late 90s and had the opportunity to work with him. When the firm folded Irwin was generous enough to write a letter of recommendation for me. He was a character around the office and everybody loved his sense of humor and i remembered those big cigars he smoked. He was awsome, and will be missed forever.
Rest in peace Irwin.