Former U.S. Congressman Jack Metcalf died Thursday afternoon from Alzheimer’s disease at a care facility in Oak Harbor. He was 79.

Metcalf made his mark on Whidbey, in Washington and beyond. State Rep. Chris Strow, who served for five years as an aide to Metcalf in Congress, said Metcalf was a politician who wouldn’t break his word. Strow, a Republican representing the 10th District, recalled the Lockheed lockout of union shipbuilders.

“There was a strike-breaking bill and he was the lone Republican to oppose it, despite intense efforts to change his mind. That said, he once crossed a picket line as a teacher because he disagreed with the strike in his school district,” Strow said.

Strow also remembered Metcalf as a man of compassion.

“He once sold pots and pans door to door for about two days, but ended up giving away sets to needy families,” Strow said.

Metcalf was born in Marysville in 1927, the son of a commercial fisherman.

When his father, John, bought 50 acres along the beach on South Whidbey, the family’s move from Camano Island when Jack Metcalf was 6 months old, became part of local lore. His father built a float of large logs, rolled their home onto the raft, and towed it along with another raft carrying the family cow to Whidbey.

Jack Metcalf would later build the Log Castle Bed and Breakfast on his family’s homestead from trees logged from the land.

Metcalf took a roundabout route to public office. He served in the Army in 1946-47, and then became a patrol boat skipper with the federal Fish and Wildlife Service in the late 1940s. He later enjoyed a 30-year career as a school teacher, spending 29 years in the Everett School District after one year as a teacher in Elma.

A Republican and a Goldwater conservative, Metcalf was elected to the state House of Representatives and served from 1961 through 1964, representing the 38th District. He later served as a state senator, representing the 21st District from 1967-1975 and the 10th District from 1981-1993.

He made three unsuccessful bids for Congress in 1968, 1974 and 1992 before winning election during the Republican takeover of Congress in 1994. He served as a 2nd District Congressman for three terms before retiring in 2001.

Considered a maverick by some, Metcalf was the lone member of Washington’s delegation to vote against a bill authorizing permanent normal trade relations with China in 2000. He also fought the Makah Tribe’s attempts to restart whaling off the Washington coast, and led long-term efforts to improve natural resource and fisheries management and environmental protection.

Congressman Rick Larsen, the 2nd District Democrat who won election to Metcalf’s seat in the U.S. House after he did not seek reelection, said he was keeping Norma and the Metcalf family in his thoughts.

“My heart and prayers are with them right now. It’s been a real challenging time for them in the past couple of months.”

When it came to helping people, Larsen said Metcalf pushed politics aside.

“They didn’t call him Gentleman Jack for nothing,” Larsen said.

Larsen recalled Metcalf’s help in getting flood-control help for Snohomish County residents when Larsen served on the Snohomish County Council.

“He didn’t check party affiliation when you went and asked for help,” Larsen said.

“He certainly would have been known as a populist,” Larsen added. “He was wary of big government and he was wary of big business, and he really tried to support the rights of the little guy.”

“Everybody knows of him as a staunch conservative, but there was a whole other side,” Strow added. “He truly believed in bringing many people to the table. He was always willing; he never turned anyone away who wanted to work with him on an issue.”

Metcalf also fought tirelessly on behalf of American men and women in uniform. He supported investigations of the causes of illnesses faced by veterans of the Gulf War, and increased funding for military family assistance and homeless veterans’ programs.

Metcalf passionately supported term limits for members of Congress, the Whistleblower Protection Act that would give state employees the power to report government mismanagement and waste without fear of retribution, and legislation to form the state community college system.

“He was deeply underestimated, both by his proponents as well as his critics,” Strow said. “He could be very canny and very savvy in politics.”

“It was a side to him of that was often not appreciated, but with all of that said, he was always a maverick. He would do what he thought was right, regardless of the costs.”

Metcalf first met his future wife Norma when they were both in high school in Langley. According to the book, “South Whidbey — Yesterday, Today & Tomorrow,” Metcalf hurt his knee during a football game and Norma was standing next to his then-girlfriend as he left the field. He later asked Norma to a school dance at the request of a friend who wanted to date a friend of Norma’s.

The couple was married for 59 years and were blessed with four daughters, 10 grandchildren and two great-grandchildren.

“He was proudest of his four daughters and frequently mentioned to predominantly female audiences that living in a house with five women he could not be anything but pro-woman,” Strow said.

Metcalf was diagnosed with Alzheimer’s a little more than five years ago. He was admitted to HomePlace, an Alzheimer’s care facility in Oak Harbor, in late December.

Given Metcalf’s long work on transportation issues, Strow said he would push legislation in Olympia to have the Clinton Ferry Terminal names after Metcalf.

A celebration of Metcalf’s life will be held March 31, at South Whidbey Assembly of God; the time of the gathering will be announced later. A reception will follow in the Intermediate School in Langley.