Dean Faulkner

“The third time is a charm.” This turns out to be a true saying for Dean Howell Faulkner who died on Monday, January 8, 2024 in Grants Pass, Oregon.

Born on April 3, 1942 in Newhall, California to Thelma and Clarence Faulkner, Dean lived mostly in Northern California (graduating from Campbell High School and San Jose State) and working first as a travel agent for Pan Am and then as a German language school teacher.  He married and divorced twice during this period.  At age 37, unhappy with his career path, he reinvented himself and dove into his love of wood-working.  He started making hand-crafted wooden toys and selling them at craft fairs.  At one near Los Angeles, he met the love of his life Patricia Remsen “Pat” Williams (1953-2020) and they married on August 9, 1981 in Santa Monica, California.  They couple lived in several places in Northern California until finally settled in Grants Pass, Oregon in 1987.  Regulars on the craft fair circuit, they were a popular draw.  Pat and Dean enjoyed dressing as various characters (supposedly “for the faire”) and described their lifestyle as ‘artistic bohemian.’ They were also spiritually devoted and active in their Baha’i community.

Dean was predeceased by both his parents, his younger sister Christine (2019), and his beloved wife Pat.  The exactly three years of widowhood were quite difficult for him between loneliness and multiple health conditions.

His survivors include his two sons Matthew W. Faulkner and Joshua L. (Ashley) Faulkner; three grandsons; several nephews and a niece; two brothers-in-law; and a sister-in-law.

Committal burial service is at home where Dean built a beautiful Japanese Garden.  He and Pat are side-by-side.

Please share a memory of Dean in his Guestbook below.