Kennewick, Washington, US
U.S. Marine Corps
Colonel, Commander of the School of Infantry
8/9/2010, Kennewick, Washington
Colonel Jon K. Rider, USMC (retired) age 70, passed away peacefully at home in Kennewick, WA on August 9, 2010, surrounded by his daughters and best friend Robin Wood (shown pictured in the portrait). Colonel Rider was born in Seattle on January 9, 1940. He attended Roosevelt High School and the University of Washington, graduated with a BA in 1963, and was then commissioned into the United States Marine Corps. He was married to Ellen Koogle from 1965-1998 and had four children: Kathryn Jane, Amy Louise, Megan Caroline, and Kirk Michael. Col. Rider served three tours of duty during the course of the Vietnam War, including two as a rifle company commander, mortar, rifle and sniper platoon commander and Operations Officer at the battalion and regimental level. During his time in Vietnam, Colonel Rider earned three Bronze Stars, a Combat Action Ribbon, and Presidential and Navy Unit Citations, among many others.
Colonel Rider also earned two master’s degrees from Pepperdine University and University of Maryland, as well as an advanced degree from the Naval War College while he was serving in the Marine Corps. He served a total of 27 years in the USMC and retired 1990 at the end of his command of the School of Infantry in Camp Pendleton, CA.
He then held the position of the alumni director at the University of Washington for six years and was a consultant and coach at ProMega from 1997-2001. His most recent career was at Pacific Northwest National Labs, where he served as a training expert for the Protective Force team of the DOE Material Protection Control and Accounting Programs to upgrade security of Russian weapons-usable nuclear material and then as the manager for Russian Security Force Training.
Some of his passions included rowing, coaching rowing, flying ultralights, running, storytelling, and was an avid reader and historian. He is survived by his four children, his sister Carolyn, granddaughter Jordan, best friend Robin and former wife Ellen.