Marvin Falk, `Completely Unconventional' Teacher

Farmer. Police chief. Teacher. Potter. Archer. Basket weaver. Jeweler. Blacksmith.

His life could hardly hold them all.

When Marvin Michael Lee Falk died of a heart attack Dec. 12 at the age of 66, his family found paintings he had begun in his art studio, baskets he had not yet finished. It seemed appropriate, said his daughter, Mary Falk, that he died the way he lived: headlong into life.

"He left life like he lived it, with a real colorful, full presence," said Mary Falk. "He died in his prime, real vibrant and strong."

Friends and family said he was a Renaissance man, a barrel-chested bear of a man whose gruff exterior belied the warmth inside. "He was definitely from a different time, an anachronism," said David Badley, a former student of Mr. Falk's at Seattle's Lakeside School, where Mr. Falk taught for 17 years. "He was completely unconventional, different than any other teacher I had."

Mr. Falk was Badley's metals teacher and adviser and taught him lessons that have carried him through life. "He told me if I understood metals I would understand how the entire world was put together," said Badley, 33. "And so he became a philosophy teacher, a history teacher, a lifelong teacher. You only meet someone like him once in your life."

Born in Albany, Ore., Mr. Falk moved to Anacortes in 1952, where he painted watercolors and signs. He later moved to Redmond, where he became a police officer, and eventually was chief of police for the town of Houghton, which is now part of Kirkland. While there he started the first harbor patrol on Lake Washington.

In the 1960s he went back to school and picked up a master's degree in fine arts at the University of Washington. He bought a 7-acre farm near Lake Stevens and, said his daughter, was a gentleman pig farmer.

He became a teacher at Lakeside School and, according to students, made a commanding presence with his long, flowing white hair, heavy gold earring, and torn clothing.

People used to think he was a janitor at Lakeside, said Badley. "He was so well-educated, but nobody guessed it."

Mr. Falk was a wonderful storyteller, Badley said, and had a flair for the unconventional. He participated in the Society for Creative Anachronism, an eclectic collection of people who would step back in time, dressing as knights and holding jousting tournaments.

Mr. Falk retired from Lakeside in 1982 to pursue his art projects. He cast bronze sculptures, made baskets, spun his own wool and - perhaps his favorite - used his blacksmith skills to create artwork. At the time of his death he was teaching the art to his 16-year-old son, Fletcher.

An avid sailor, at the time of his death he was living in Anacortes aboard The Thunder, a well-known classic sailboat. Mr. Falk rescued and saved the boat during the 1962 Columbus Day storm and had been in love with it ever since.

Mr. Falk was well-known in the arts community, and participated in Seattle's Bumbershoot and Folklife Festivals. Many of his baskets were on display at this year's Bellingham Allied Arts show.

Friends talk about Mr. Falk in two dimensions: his pre- and post-hippie days. "He kind of tended toward being an authoritative hippie," said Wallace Wohlhuter, a longtime friend. "After he was police chief he grew a beard. Sometimes it would be long like Santa's, sometimes trimmed to an inch."

Mr. Falk is survived by three daughters, Mary Falk of Lake Stevens, Katherine J. Riley of Seattle, and Melba M. Krug of Vashon Island; his son, Fletcher Falk of Anacortes; stepmother Lillian Gillette, of Pendleton, Ore.; and three grandchildren.

A memorial service, including a display of his artwork, is planned for Jan. 7 at 4:30 p.m. at Lakeside School.