Kenneth Dean Oakleaf, age 81, a resident of Ft. Scott, Kansas, passed away Wednesday, January 16, 2019, at Country Place Senior Living in Ft. Scott.
He was born September 2, 1937, in Red Oak, Iowa, the son of Reuben Oakleaf and Nadine Fort Oakleaf. After graduating high school, Kenneth joined the United States Air Force. He served with the 551st Airborne stationed at Otis Air Force base on Cape Cod. While in the Air Force, he worked in electronics maintenance which was used to patrol the entire east cost of the United States.
He married Carol Ann Horner on October 19, 1958, in Red Oak. They returned to Massachusetts and stayed there until Kenny was discharged from the Air Force in 1960 with the rank of Airman First Class.
Because of the skills he learned in the military, once he was discharged, he immediately began a career with A. T. & T. In 1967, because of his work, Ken and Carol moved from Iowa to Overland Park, Kansas. When he retired in 1989, he had been serving as a project manager for the installation of underground fiberoptic cable. In addition to working for A. T. & T., Ken also worked out of his home where he repaired televisions and other electronics.
Ken and Carol moved to Ft. Scott in 2015 to be near family. In earlier years, he enjoyed woodworking and fishing. He was a member of the Community Covenant Church of Lenexa, Kansas.
Survivors include his wife, Carol, of the home; and three children, Lori Lovelace and her husband, Leroy Walker, and Daniel L. Oakleaf and his wife, Coree Oakleaf, all of Ft. Scott and K. Douglas Oakleaf and his wife, Nina Harrison-Oakleaf, of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania; eight grandchildren, Aaron, Kendal, Kara, Cadee, Joseph, Harold, Douglas and Tori and four great-grandchildren, Karlee, Luna, Caleb and Neilha. Also surviving are a brother, David Oakleaf, of Red Oak, Iowa and two sisters, Barbara Hamernik, of Topeka, Kansas and Linda Oakleaf, also of Red Oak.
He was preceded in death by his parents, three brothers, Duane, Melvin and Darryl Oakleaf and a sister, Glennis Carlson.
Pastor Trevor Jacobs will conduct funeral services at 10:00 A.M. Thursday, January 24th at the Cheney Witt Chapel.
Burial will follow in the U. S. National Cemetery.
Memorials are suggested to KVCY Broadcasting or the Hammond United Methodist Church and may be left in care of the Cheney Witt Chapel, 201 S. Main, P.O. Box 347, Ft. Scott, KS 66701. Words of remembrance may be submitted to the online guestbook at cheneywitt.com.