Bradley Dean Washo

July 7, 1954 - January 7, 2022

Brad Washo’s journey on this earth ended peacefully at home on January 7, 2022, but his spirit of adventure and love of life will live on in all of us. He always saw the world as his to explore, his to experience, but mostly his to share with those he knew and strangers not yet his friends. Brad loved to travel, to write about his travels, and to discover the history of the lands he passed through. His way of sharing that love of life inspired those around him to break out of their routines and make their own destiny, as he always tried to do. When he was young, he once wrote that his dream in life was to marry happily, live at the edge of the water, travel the world on two wheels and feel at peace. That is exactly the destiny he created for himself. He is survived by his children, Jaimie and Robert, his grandson Evan, and his wife Angie. He was a man of deep friendships, like Becky from high school and Carlin, his first wife and lifelong friend. Brad was a man at peace in his life, as he would frequently tell anyone who would listen. He was a law enforcement officer for his entire career. He began his professional life as a firefighter for Reedy Creek, on standby for the possibility of danger…in the Magic Kingdom. From there he traveled across the country alone to Colorado, where he was an officer with the Arvada police department. There he met and married Carlin, added two wonderful children to his life, and earned a master’s degree in Public Administration. After a decade, Florida called him back, and he joined the Orange County Sherriff’s Department where he moved up through the ranks, retiring as a Sargent. His squad there earned Squad of the Year, and his motivational leadership helped launch careers and is still remembered fondly. Brad’s love of adventure will be one of the strongest memories he leaves in our hearts. Nova Scotia, the Continental Divide, Alaska, Europe, the Florida Keys, Snowshoe Mountain, and the back roads of Lake County. Everywhere he went he drank in the history, loved to try local foods, and relished the feeling of the wind, the smells, and the feel of each unique mile. Although his life was cut short at only 67, he lived a century of travels and shared that love with everyone. Dementia is a terrible disease, and it stole his present, but it never took his past. He lived on in his own memories and traveled in his mind when his body could no longer ride. In lieu of flowers, please take that adventure that has been put off, hug those you love, and go feel the wind, smell the smells, make the memories that you will carry forever.