Julian John Congreve Eckford-Prossor died on May 15, 2022, at Virginia Mason Hospital in Seattle with his wife and daughters at his side after a 12-week battle with aggressive and sudden-onset T-cell Lymphoma.
Born in London, England on January 10, 1959, to Patricia and John Eckford-Prossor, Julian emigrated from England to the United States at the age of six with his mother, and sister, eventually settling in Darien, Connecticut. At age 15 his family moved to Los Angeles, and he finished high school at Pacific Palisades High School in 1976. Julian studied environmental design at the Evergreen State College, graduating in 1981. He returned to Los Angeles and worked for several retail architects. In 1985 he ventured back to the Pacific Northwest and began studies for an MBA at the University of Washington.
He met his wife, Kristen Glundberg, at the Two Bells in Seattle on October 28, 1988. When they parted that evening, he told his friends that he would be marrying her. Two years later Julian and Kristen were married on the Skansonia Ferry in Seattle. They have two daughters Faith (25) and Tovi (22.) Julian was an exemplary father who was always there for his daughters, no matter the hour. He provided abiding comfort and support, and fierce unconditional love. He was a natural teacher to them with encyclopedic knowledge of history, nature, and music. He continually challenged them to be their best selves. He will be deeply missed, forever.
Julian loved all music, especially traditional English folk music, and but most of all, the Grateful Dead. He played his guitar nearly every day. Some of his favorite memories involved Dead concerts at the Winterland Ballroom in San Francisco with his friends. His other great love was the outdoors and he felt best when rafting the rivers of the West, cycling, fly fishing, and most of all, hiking in the Olympics and Sierras. He treasured any time he could spend outside, especially with his daughters.
Julian was an architect and land developer. He worked for REI in the 1990s and was integral to the expansion of REI stores across the nation. He also had stints with several large architectural firms in Seattle. Preferring to be an entrepreneur, he started his own company, Inhabit, LLC in 2005. Julian built or remodeled over 30 houses in Seattle and stuck firmly to his belief to leave the campsite better than he found it.
Julian is survived by his wife Kristen Glundberg, daughters Faith and Tovi Eckford-Prossor of Bainbridge Island; his mother and stepfather Patricia and Walter Husak, and his sister, Melanie Eckford-Prossor, of Santa Ynez, California; half-brothers Dominick Prossor, London, and Jules Eckford-Prossor, Helsinki; niece Marissa Clifford, Los Angeles; and many extended family members across the Puget Sound, Southern California, and England.
The family would like to thank the Progressive Care Unit at Virginia Mason for their compassionate care of Julian in his final days. The family would also like to thank their family, friends, and especially their Bainbridge Island Family for the support and comfort provided in the wake of Julian’s sudden death. Donations can be made in his name to the Pacific Northwest Outward Bound School. https://www.outwardbound.org.
