Obituary of Rufus Lloyd Tyler, II

Rufus Lloyd Tyler, II

May 30, 1954 - October 13, 2017

R. Lloyd Tyler, II, died suddenly after returning home from an early morning walk on October 13th.   

Lloyd was born on a late spring day in 1954, the sixth of eight children. He grew up in Walla Walla, Washington, and married his high school sweetheart, Jennifer Beito, in 1976.  They enjoyed 41 wonderful years of marriage together, and remain bonded forever in love.

Lloyd graduated with a bachelor's in Business and a bachelor's in Spanish Literature & Language from the University of Washington in 1981. He began his career by working for three years for a syndicator of oil & gas limited partnership investments.

His first daughter, Lydia, was born in 1984. Just over a year later, Lloyd received his MBA in International Management from Thunderbird University. He spent the next eleven years working as an investment banker with Seattle Northwest Securities. In the midst of this era, his second daughter, Afton, was born in 1988.

After a two-year sabbatical in the late nineties, Lloyd took a job as the CFO of the North American Development Bank, and the family spent the next seven years living in San Antonio, Texas.

In 2005, the family moved back to Washington, where Lloyd served as the CFO for the City of Vancouver until his passing. His twelve years with the City saw the completion of such successful projects as the new City Hall, two Fire Stations, the remodel of the Marshall Recreation Center, a new Police Precinct, and the Waterfront Access project to facilitate private development on the Vancouver Waterfront, to name just a few. Lloyd was also instrumental in the ongoing success of the Hilton Hotel and Convention Center, the renovation of multiple buildings at the Fort Vancouver National Historic Reserve and most recently, City efforts for neighborhood and community redevelopment in the Mill Plain corridor.

Lloyd’s family remembers him for his particular depth of character, sensitivity, and desire to proactively affect the world and those around him. He had an innate skill for innovating and leading positive change without the need to call attention to himself. He was funny, quick-witted, and always full of energy. He was patient, accepting, forgiving, and generous. Lloyd remained thoughtful and aware of others until the end. He always took the time for, and had a genuine interest in, everyone he met. His family considers him the best husband, father, grandfather, and brother any of them could have asked for, and love him dearly.

Some of Lloyd's favorite things in life, outside of spending time in conversation and laughter with his family, included outdoor activities (whether gardening, walking, running, cycling, skiing, hiking, backpacking, or mountain climbing), travel (visiting thirty-six US states and seventeen countries on five continents), reading, music, studying history and current events, and professional development in the realm of finance and international business.