Jason Ruffing of Bainbridge Island passed away peacefully on Monday, Aug. 18, 2014 at the age of 43 with his wife, mother and dog, Abbey, at his side.

Jason was born and raised in Chicago, Illinois where he met the love of his life, and his future wife, Kate (Hillmann) Ruffing. They married on a beautiful fall afternoon in the Chequamegon-Nicolet National Forest on Sept. 20, 2003.

Jason was a software engineer, having received degrees from DuPage College, Roosevelt University and Masters from DePaul University in Chicago, Illinois. He worked at AC Nielsen and was instrumental in the design and development of their statistical software systems.

He then took a position with Art Technology Group (ATG) in Seattle (now part of Oracle) when Jason and Kate moved to Bainbridge Island in 2007.

A lifelong Chicago White Sox fan, Jason loved to watch and play the game and was an all-star pitcher in his youth. One of his happiest moments was when the White Sox finally won the World Series. After his wife noticed tears in his eyes and commented that he hadn’t wept at their wedding, he told her, “I have been waiting for this my whole life. I have only been waiting for you since puberty”.

Jason loved making people laugh, even when his jokes were terrible. An avid outdoorsman, Jason loved fishing of any sort, hiking in mountains, farming ducks and chickens and exploring nature through the lens of a camera. Hikes that took him deep into the woods and among the old growth Pacific Coast trees were his favorite.

He was a strong supporter of animal rescue and adopted two rescue dogs, Abbey and Riley and one cat, Newman, who was his faithful sidekick.  Most of all, Jason was a wonderful person, full of love, kindness and compassion towards all.

Jason is survived by his wife, Kate; mother, Sally Ruffing; sister, Julie Zolidis; brother, Mark (Kristina) Rake; and beloved nieces, nephews and pets. Jason was preceded in death by his father, Joseph Ruffing.

In honor of Jason, a memorial will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 6 at Grace Episcopal Church, Bainbridge Island.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Jason Ruffing Memorial Fund at Key Bank (617 High School Road, Bainbridge Island, WA 98110).  Funds will be used to support a variety of local charities that were important to Jason.

Sign the online guest book at www.cookfamilyfuneralhome.com.