Kenneth W. Kraft, age 80, of Kanawha passed away Thursday, September 20, 2007 at
the Wright Medical Center in Clarion.
Funeral services for Kenneth Kraft will be held on Monday, September 24, 2007 at
10:30 AM at the Kanawha Lutheran Church with Pastor Lee Nelson and Janelle
Siffring AiM officiating. Burial will take place at Amsterdam Cemetery near
Kanawha.
Visitation for Kenneth Kraft will be held on Sunday, September 23, 2007 from
2:00 until 4:00 PM at the Ewing Dugger Funeral Home in Kanawha and continue one
hour prior to services at the church on Monday.
Kenneth Walter Kraft, the son of Walter A. and Thelma Irene Schultz Kraft, was
born on the family farm near Renwick on January 7, 1927. He attended country
school through the eighth grade and then went to Renwick High School. In March
of 1945, Kenneth was drafted into the United States Army and served his country
in Germany until his honorable discharge on November 6, 1946.
Upon his discharge, Kenneth worked on a farm as a farmhand. On September 27,
1947 he was united in marriage to Marian Jackson at the Little Brown Church in
Nashua. This union was blessed with six children.
In their first year of marriage the couple moved to Ames where Kenneth worked at
the Water Department for the city of Ames. They returned to Kanawha and Kenneth
worked for Knoll's Produce for 9 years. He then worked at the Farmer's Co-op
Elevator in Kanawha. Kenneth began working for the United States Postal Service
as a clerk. In 1970 he opened the Kraft Hardware Store that he sold to his son
Doug in 1975. Kenneth started the Kanawha Service Center helping people with
refrigeration, plumbing and heating and electrical work. Kenneth finally
returned to the Postal Service as a rural carrier until his retirement.
Kenneth really enjoyed fishing on his own and in Minnesota with friends and on
family trips. He cherished time with his family, especially the children. He
ran the chain at all Kanawha High School football games for many years. Those
years of running the chain allowed him a front row seat to watch all three of
his sons play at home games. Kenneth was an avid gardener, and enjoyed
supplying the town of Kanawha with potatoes and tomatoes. He loved helping his
cousin Robert in the field for spring planting and the fall harvest. Kenneth
was able to fix anything, and would give of himself and his time whenever anyone
needed a helping hand.
Kenneth was a member of the Kanawha Lutheran Church, the Kanawha American Legion
and the Kanawha and Britt VFW.
Kenneth is survived by his wife of 60 years, Marian; six children: K. Douglas
(Barb) Kraft of Pella, Paula (Darl) Abbas of Kanawha, Denny "Buck" (Jane) Kraft
of Pella, Dana (Tammy) Kraft of Kanawha, Melanie Kraft of Amarillo, Texas and
Mona (Tony) Harle of Klemme; 12 grandchildren; 9 great-grandchildren; two
sisters: Sandra Harris of Lincoln, Nebraska and LuAnn (Frank) Hefty of Bixby,
Oklahoma; two brothers: Garry (Sandy) Kraft of Bode and Donald (Carolyn) Kraft
of Tulsa, Oklahoma; along with many family members and a multitude of friends.