Kenneth Curtis Obituary

Although I never met my great Uncle Ken in person, I cherish the few phone conversations I had with him. My mother, Jinny, was very close to him, especially in the last few years, so I felt like I knew him well through her many visits to Colorado Springs. I am saddened my children will not get to meet this great man, but I will make sure to pass on his legacy of service to others.

I guess it began about 15 years ago. Kerry O'Brien and I would go jogging in Monument Valley Park. We would pass by a man who was walking/jogging in the other direction and he'd yell out "how's the weather?" recognising us from TV. This would go on for a few years, and occasionally he would stop and chat and we came to know him as Ken Curtis. The last few years, I would hook up with him and do a few laps around the Boddington soccer field and one day he became out of breath and invited me into his home nearby. I then learned about all his travels to Indonesia and his various military tours. We would run into each other on occasion down in the park, went to lunch a few times and I had just stopped to chat with him 2 days before he died. I invited him to the monthly broadcaster's luncheon Dec 6th. He had worked at KKTV briefly and knew some of attendees. When I read his obit, I became fully aware of all of his service to the community as well as his service to our country. Ken never talked much about all he had accomplished, because he was always interested in what you were doing.

Take care, friend!

Ken was one of the very first people I met when moving to Colorado Springs in 1986. We always gave thanks to our dogs Floyd and Duchess because if we wouldn't have been out walking/running them, we would never have met! I loved Ken with all my heart. He was like a father to me. We chatted, laughed and cried. Not only did I enjoy his friendship but Edie's as well. Ken truly had a positive effect on everyone's life and I feel honored that I was one of those people. Even after moving back to Phoenix we always remained great friends and kept in touch. Knowing the "sweet tooth" Ken had, it was always a pleasure for me to send him my baked "goodies"!! He was always so appreciative. Always a joke between us... and how we remembered each others age..Ken would say "you are exactly 50 years younger than me, just a kid!" He never forgot! If I live to be 95 I hope I can fulfill as many people's lives as he did. Kenny, Edie is probably happy to have you back in her life again but it breaks my heart that you are gone. I will truly miss you but as one of your other friends said..."I will see you again sometime, too." Love you..Julie

I was born in April of the year that Uncle Ken entered West Point, so I can say I knew him briefly before he became a military person! What a privilege it is to have known him and his beautiful wife, Edie. They were great fun and marvelous hosts. I so enjoyed bantering with Uncle Ken and will miss him.

Where does one begin? What can I add that others have not already said? I agree with my sister - Uncle Ken and Aunt Edie were magical people. Our visits with them, from childhood on, were always very special times. He had such an appreciation for life, for people. He had such discipline in his habits. He had such a love for all the people who entered his life. He was generous, kind, funny, interesting, and so much more. It is very sad to lose the last one of our family in his generation. I will always cherish my memories. I feel sorry for the poor people who have to listen to me rave about him - as I have for years! He was truly one-of-a-kind.

Ken was my Uncle. I was the first child in my family, and my father, Charles, was Ken's younger brother. You can guess who I was named after!

Ken and Charles were inseparable. Ken was probably more of an influence on my father than any other person.

We never saw too much of Uncle Ken and Aunt Edie while we were growing up, but when they came to visit, it was a real treat. Of course, he always had the latest Eldorado, for which I always envied him.

After hearing about Ken's passing, I wrote this to my cousin, Jinny. "Ken was, and still is one of those people who I most admired in life. Above all he was a people person and had a great way with them. I often think of how to improve my relationships with others and then reflect back on Uncle Ken."

Fortu
nately, Irene, my wife, and I had an opportunity to stay with him in Colorado Springs a couple years back when Ken was only 91. What a wonderful time remembering and enjoying his stories. I still remember the three of us doing four laps around the track behind his house.

Ken's family and friends have suffered a great loss but so have all of Colorado Springs. It was my good fortune to know Ken and to serve with him in a number of organizations. His great good humor and hard work did much to advance the objectives of each one. He always gave it his all. We will truly miss you Ken!

Ken was my uncle. One of my first memories was Uncle Ken and Aunt Edie taking me for a ride in their new, red and white Cadillac Convertible...back in the 50's. Ken had just made Bird Colonel back then and I was so proud of him. My Aunt used to tell the story where we pulled up next to another car, and I said to the driver, "This is a FULL Bird Colonel!" Everyone used to get lots of laughs about that, but I didn't care...he was my Uncle and I thought the world of him. Over the years, nothing changed. He made it to Brigadier and when I moved to Colorado in 1970, he was one of the first people I looked up. He was a fantastic role model for me, I'll miss him a lot.

Ken Curtis was my dad's brother so I always called him "Uncle Ken" even though he outranked me. I can still remember going to the Army War College in Carlisle, PA as a young boy to visit Uncle Ken and Aunt Edie. I also remember him taking me and my brothers to visit a Nike site not too far from where we lived outside of Philadelphia and letting us drink milk that had come from "Army cows." And he did love his Cadillacs....my very first memory of him was in about 1948 when he and Edie visited and he was driving what I believe was a brand new Cadillac - I was only five at the time. He was the inspiration for my entering the Navy ROTC program at Penn State and my subsequent 23 year career flying for the Navy. In 2000 my wife Geraldine and I finally were able to travel to Colorado Springs to visit Uncle Ken and Aunt Edie. We were so happy to see them and so glad we got to see Edie before she passed away later that year. We visited the Pioneer Museum, the Air Force Academy and other local sites, and he and Edie were the perfect hosts. Ken was the last of his family, my father having passed away in 1999, and as such he was our last link to the Curtis side of our family. I will never forget my uncle and in due course I hope to visit with him again. God bless you General - I hope you and Edie are happily together once again.

Though I never had the opportunity to meet "Uncle" Ken, I know he was a remarkable man. My husband was named after his great-uncle Ken and he and my mother-in-law Jinny loved him dearly. He will missed by many.

I've had the pleasure and privilege of being welcomed by Uncle Ken and Aunt Edie into their family and home as the wife of Uncle Ken's nephew, Dick. They were warm, loving, and a continuous source of fascinating stories of their travels, interests and activities.

I so admired my Uncle Ken that I named one of my sons after him. He and my Aunt Edie were such magical people to me as I was growing up. My sister and I often visited them in Canada and in Virginia when he was posted stateside. I had the priviledge of visiting him in Colorado Springs when I was stationed at Fitzsimons Army Hospital where I was an Occupational Therapist. I spent many wonderful days with him over the past 5 years that I will always cherish. He loved to beat me in gin rummy and kept a running score of our over 200 games. He remains for all of us a remarkable role model to guide our lives.

I have known General C for probably 35 years...a man I greatly respected, and whom I knew to be wonderfully kind and caring. I always admired the way he treated and spoke to everyone regardless of their station in life. They were all the same to him. He never forgot who you were, and never forgot that you were his friend, and he cherished those relationships. I know that you stand in the presence of your Lord and Savior Jesus Christ even as I write this. I salute you, General C...Thank you for making a difference in the lives of so many people. Thanks for being a friend to me for many, many years. I'll see you again...