Alex “Al” Toth, of Coupeville, passed away at his home on July 17, 2013 at age 88. He was born March 5, 1925 in South Bend, Ind. to his Hungarian immigrant parents, Charles and Lina Toth. He was proud of his Hungarian heritage, often cooking Hungarian foods for his friends and staff at his real estate office, Panorama Properties, where he had a full kitchen to indulge his favorite hobby — cooking.

Al had a normal childhood, growing up during the Great Depression. To earn extra money, beginning at age 8, he sold magazine subscriptions to Liberty Magazine, then later graduated to having a paper route, picking fruit in the summer, working at a soda fountain and being a waiter at a restaurant.

During WWII in 1942, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy at age 17, while still in high school. After graduating in 1943, he entered the Navy and served until 1946, when he was honorably discharged as an ensign. Al entered the University of Notre Dame after his Navy service and graduated in 1949 with a degree in journalism. He went to work in Grand Rapids, Mich. for a radio and television station as a copy writer. After becoming disenchanted with being a copy writer, Al moved to Seattle in 1952 and started a new career in real estate sales, with MacPherson Realty. In 1953, while flying from Chicago to Seattle, he met his future wife, United Airlines stewardess Barbara Maschinot. In 1954 they married, and subsequently had five wonderful children. In the early 1960s, real estate sales slowed considerably and Al started selling pots and pans door-to-door. A friend asked him, “What’s a Notre Dame graduate doing selling pots and pans?” Al replied “Hey, I’ve got a wife and five kids and we have to eat!” They never missed a meal.

The Seattle World’s Fair in 1962 provided a new opportunity for Al. He was trying to think of a way to make money selling souvenirs when the thought hit him — what would be a good souvenir? Something practical that would appeal to men, women and children, and sell for only $1. He was scratching his head with a pen — “That’s it,” he said. “A pen! What was going to be the outstanding attraction at the fair — the Space Needle! How about a pen in the shape of the Space Needle?”

After a hectic search for funding, the Space Needle pen was born and was the top selling souvenir at the Seattle World’s Fair. He sold 487,000 pens for $1 each. Today, these pens are collector’s items and being sold for $10-$20 each.

While in Seattle, Al Toth was a member of the Notre Dame Club of Western Washington. In 1964 he was elected president of the club and in 1965 he was named the Notre Dame Club Man-of-the-Year.

In 1967 Al discovered Whidbey Island while selling recreational lots at Admiral’s Cove, Sierra and Holmes Harbor for MacPherson Realty.

In 1969 the Toth Family moved to Whidbey Island where Al had a home built for them at Ledgewood Beach, where he was selling lots for his own company, Panorama Properties. By 1971, Al had sold most of the lots at Ledgewood Beach and decided to move Panorama Properties to Oak Harbor. His first office was a converted barber shop. Also at this time, he and his wife bought and owned the “Big Rock” in Coupeville. In 1978 he built a brand new building for Panorama Properties. The rest is history. Many millions of dollars in sales, many homes and land sold, many friends made, many meals cooked and many parties were had.

Al will be remembered as an honest man, strong-willed, straight-forward and candid. He said what he meant and meant what he said. He did not mince his words. Surprisingly, he was also quite sentimental. He enjoyed hearing a good joke and telling one. He was an accomplished cook, a mediocre swimmer and a very unlucky fisherman.

Al was a member of the Notre Dame Club of Western Washington, the National Association of Realtors and St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Coupeville.

Al is survived by his wife, Barbara, at the family home in Ledgewood Beach, and by his children and their spouses: Patricia/Patti Toth (Randy) Stone, Jennifer (Bob) Henning, Charles (Val) Toth, Melissa (Roland) Robinson and Janet (Terry) Backman. He is also survived by his seven grandchildren — Kylan Robinson, Jaron Robinson, Carly Backman, Blair Henning, Riley Backman, Shelby Toth and Veronica Monell – and one great granddaughter, Lainey Robinson. He is also survived by his sister Irene Csiszar. He was preceded in death by his granddaughter Katie Toth (Patti’s daughter) and his sister Rosemarie Cook.

At Al’s request, there will be no memorial service. He asked that his friends remember him by raising a glass of good cheer in his memory. In lieu of flowers and consistent with Al’s wishes, the family requests that donations be made to the Katie Toth Memorial Education Fund of the American Professional Society on the Abuse of Children (APSAC) www.apsac.org/donate-to-apsac, or to the American Brain Tumor Association www.abta.org/