Feb. 20, 2013
Kenneth A. Kikendall was born at the family farm in Winthrop, March 14, 1940. Ken was blessed with an amazing memory for dates and numbers. He enjoyed mechanics, trains and old tractors. A truer friend cannot be found in this world. He did farming labor in his early adulthood in the Methow Valley, then married Iva Riibe of Omak, and they made their home in Wenatchee.
He worked in a fruit-packing warehouse there until he was disabled by injury. Iva predeceased him by many years. Ken used those years to attend Wenatchee Valley College to gain his GED, as he had long before promised his Dad that he would do.
That educational pursuit was interrupted several times for surgeries due to cancer. His tenacity was an inspiration to those around him, and he was awarded a standing ovation at graduation at age 67.
Ken was a member of Eastmont Presbyterian Church, East Wenatchee. He is survived by siblings Duane of Carlton, Annetta of Clarkston, Wash., and Jeannie of Cambridge, Idaho, plus several nieces and nephews. Death took him Feb. 9, just a few weeks shy of his 73rd birthday. He will be interred in the family plot at Sullivan Cemetery, Winthrop.
