Services planned for Fred Polinder, Lynden farmer, horseman
Services will be held Monday, Nov. 9, for Fred K. Polinder Jr., a Northwest Washington Fair board member for 32 years who was known nationally for his work as a farmer and for his hobby of driving and showing draft horses.
Polinder died Saturday, Oct. 31, at the age of 87. A lifelong Lynden resident, he and his wife, Glenda, had recently celebrated their 65th wedding anniversary.
A dairy farmer with Holsteins, Polinder was one of the first farmers to install a milk tank in Whatcom County. He was active in the Dairy Herd Improvement Association, serving as state and national president. He also was active with the All West Breeders Select Board, and was named to the Washington Purebred Dairy Cattle Association Hall of Fame.
He began driving a six-horse hitch at the age of 18 at the fair in Lynden, and continued for six decades with his prize-winning Clydesdales. He showed horses throughout the United States and Canada, and was active with the National Clydesdale Association, again serving as national president and winning induction into the Clydesdale Association Hall of Fame.
He also was a horse judge at major shows in North and South America and in Scotland.
Polinder’s father had bought his first Clydesdales in the early 1940s, when the large horses were still used for farm work. Fred K. Polinder Sr. showed Clydesdales until 1970, when his son and daughter-in-law took charge of the horses. Polinder’s father also was well-known for restoring horse-drawn carriages, several of which remain on display at Lynden Pioneer Museum.
Visitation for Polinder will be 3 to 5 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 8, at Gillies Funeral Home in Lynden. Graveside committal will be 12:30 p.m. Monday at Lynden’s Monumenta Cemetery, followed by a 2 p.m. memorial service at First Reformed Church, 610 Grover St., Lynden.
The family suggests memorials to Christian Health Care Center, 855 Aaron Drive, Lynden, WA 98264, or to Whatcom Hospice, 2800 Douglas Ave., Bellingham, WA 98225.
This story was originally published November 3, 2015 at 8:28 AM with the headline "Services planned for Fred Polinder, Lynden farmer, horseman."