Kenneth John McCulloch was born February 4, 1935, to Harry and Marie (Kargleder) McCulloch at Milbank, South Dakota. He died Thursday, July 28, 2005, at his daughters home near White, South Dakota. Funeral mass was 10:00 A.M. Thursday, August 4, 2005, at St. Thomas More Catholic Church in Brookings, with interment at Fairview Cemetery in White.
Ken was baptized, received his First Holy Communion, and Confirmation at St. Lawrence Catholic Church in Milbank. He attended school in Milbank, and graduated in 1953. After graduation, he attended CTI in Kansas City for one year, until he was called back to the farm after his mothers death. As fate would have it, that is where he met his beloved wife, Myrna Willmott, and they were married in White, South Dakota, on October 20, 1956. After their marriage, they traveled to Kansas City where Ken finished his degree at CTI in electrical engineering. He enlisted in the Army in January 1958. His love of adventure was ever present, and he and his new bride took off for Alaska, hauling a six ton mobile home over the Al-Can Highway. While in Alaska, he worked for the RCA Service Company at the Ballistic Missile Early Warning Station at Clear, Alaska, from 1961 until 1963. He earned his pilots license while in Alaska, and enjoyed hunting and fishing in the great Alaskan wilderness. He was offered a job at Offutt Air Force Base in Bellevue, Nebraska, where they lived for 17 years. Ken and Myrna built a home in Bellevue and a restaurant, Taco Towne. Along with this venture, Ken also ran Nebraskas largest fireworks stand50 feet. He also operated an asbestos abatement company, and with Myrna owned and operated an antique furniture shop and refinishing business. In 1984 they moved to Beaverton, Oregon, where he ran the shipping office for the Riggs Institute until he became ill.
Ken enjoyed being outdoors, wood working, carpentry, refinishing furniture, spending time with his children and grandchildren, and showing friends and family the sights of Oregon. He especially enjoyed talking to people from all over the world about the Riggs Institute.
Survivors include his daughter, Carolyn (Brett) Knutson, of rural Brookings; his son, Richard (Lisa) McCulloch, of Portland, Oregon; five grandchildren: Theresa, Cecilia, Regina, and Monica Knutson and Jacob McCulloch; two sisters: Elaine (Charles) Borda of Redding, California, and Margaret Weber of Santa Rosa, California; one brother, Roger (Irene) McCulloch of Milbank, South Dakota; and several nieces and nephews. He was preceded in death by his wife, Myrna; his parents; and a nephew, Shawn.