A father, husband, brother and dear friend, he lit up a room when he walked in and gave everything he did his all. Rick co-owned Pacific Plants, a wholesale nursery business in Issaquah. “No matter what it was, work or play, boy oh boy, he would go after it. But he would never do it at anybody else's expense,” shared his friend and business co-owner, Chuck Burget. Rick had a gentleness and interest in nature and making landscapes beautiful.

Friends will always remember Rick as the five-time winner of the Mr. West competition - his last win in the homespun games even as he was losing his battle with Non-Hodgkin's Lymphoma at the age of 43. The Rick Pankow Foundation was started in 2001 after his passing, allowing the legacy of Rick to live on in the spirit of giving.