Kenneth James Bohannon
April 16, 1945 ~ August 18, 2019
Kenneth J. Bohannon passed away on August 18, 2019, at the age of 74. He battled metastatic adenocarcinoma for the past year, but he lived that year with courage and vigor. Ken was born and raised in New Albany, Indiana, the middle of three children in the Bohannon family. Having graduated from Indiana University with a degree in Chemistry, Ken was commissioned in the US Air Force in 1970. He credited the Air Force with expanding his horizons and exposing him to a fascinating world awaiting his exploration. After 23 years of military service, which included a Titan Missile command, an MS degree from the Air Force Institute of Technology, a tour of duty in Korea, a career in contracting and program management, Lieutenant Colonel Bohannon retired in 1993. Following his military experience, Ken continued to expand his horizons with additional careers at Lockheed Martin, the Central Intelligence Agency, and the US Department of State. He retired for the last time in 2014.
Over the course of his life, he traveled to 36 countries, taking full advantage of learning about the culture wherever he found himself. Besides travel, some of Ken’s adventures included flying planes, parachuting, riding camels and elephants, rafting on the Nile, and hot air ballooning. Where there was an opportunity for adventure, he embraced it. By the same token, his natural curiosity and love of art, music, history, and archeology took him to museums, cultural landmarks, and venues around the world. His affiliation for nature and willingness to test himself led him to many avocations—cycling, hiking, mountain climbing, running, motorcycling, sailing, paddling, in-line skating, skiing, golfing, and tennis. He also liked to play bridge and shoot pool. Another side to Ken was his skill at woodworking. Ken was a “fixer”. He loved taking a broken piece of furniture and repairing it to peak condition. His skills included almost all aspects of home repair. (He renovated a “fixer-upper” house, doing much of the major work himself.) And yet, still another side of him loved to read and discuss poetry. Ken enjoyed studying and investing in the stock market too. A modern Renaissance man was Ken Bohannon.
Ken was a natural “people person” who befriended anyone from any background and remained connected to many (including several of his grade school friends). From time to time, Ken gathered several pals for an informal men’s group, sharing beer and guy talk on a warm evening on the deck. He was open and confident in his relationships, a good story teller as well as a good listener. It could be said truthfully that Ken never met a stranger.
Ken is survived by his wife and soulmate, Linda, his son Justin, his step sons, Erin Hutchinson and wife Lisa, and Brian Hutchinson and wife, Beth and five grandchildren, Ryan, Ben, Kate, Jacob and Levi. Also surviving is Ken’s sister Carol Oelke and her husband David, nephew Christian and his family and niece Brooke. Ken’s brother Donald Bohannon and his wife Dee, nieces Bridget and Amy and their families also survive him.
We will remember Ken Bohannon as a man who lived his life to its fullest, and even in the midst of dying, showed us how to live.
A Celebration of Ken’s Life will be held on Sunday, October 13, 2019, in the chapel at Mount Vernon Unitarian Church at 3:00 PM. A reception will follow the service.
In lieu of flowers, please make a donation in Ken's memory to a charity of your choice.
Ken will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery at a date yet to be determined.
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A truly lovely man.
Linda, you wrote a beautiful and meaningful “tribute” to Ken. He will surely be missed and may all the good memories he left behind live on in you, Jesse, his family and friends.
Ken was my roommate at I.U. and we kept up over the years with reciprocal visits. He was a wonderful friend, always game for adventure, and enthusiastic to learn in many fields. He will be my guide for end of life. He was filled with gratitude for his own life and accepted his end gracefully. He was an exceptional friend.
My wife Linda and I met Ken while we were based at Sunnyvale AFS in California and became the best of friends. He followed me to Washington, DC and again to England. We shared so many adventures and experiences together. We loved sailing, biking, running and visiting museums / art galleries together to name but a few. What a wonderful friend, we miss him dearly.
I worked on and off with Ken for years at the Agency in his capacities both as a contracting officer and a fellow Facilities careerist. He was a true gentleman and a consummate professional. He was a pleasure to work with. I absolutely concur with his former roommate’s comment about his enthusiasm to learn. That allowed him to convert from contracts to a Facilities career with great success. He was always interesting to talk to and a great storyteller. We were so happy to see him finally recover from his biking accident years ago, but saddened to hear of his cancer and so sorry to hear of his passing. He will be missed!
Ken and I met in Wichita, Kansas while serving as Titan II Missile Launch Officers for the Air Force. Our common interests made us close friends, and I admired his intellect and love of life. We enjoyed skiing together in Colorado and sailing on my sailboat in Wichita. I enjoyed our long discussions as we philosophically solved the world’s problems. I admired his passion for travel and his ability to make friends wherever he went. Aletha and I were very blessed to have Ken and Linda visit us in New Mexico in July 2018. We will truly miss Ken.
Stephen Miller and Baron Millard
Like Joe, I met Ken when were we missile officers at McConnell AFB in the early 1970s. Ken was intelligent, never advertising it, and caring about his friends. I recall, “Steve, you know what you ought to do?” when he would nudge me toward travelling to Europe. It worked eventually. He remained a friend to me and then my partner Baron and maintained a wide field of interests. When email came along, we used it to keep in contact. Ken and Linda spent several months in England a few years ago, so we were able to meet up on more than one occasion. The four of us heard a splendid concert, I recall. Last year when he wrote that he was seriously ill, we were very sorry. I had the chance to realise that when he encouraged me to get on a plane several decades before in Wichita, he had stepped into the role of the older brother I never had. I feel I owe him a great deal, as so many of us do.
ken brought so much joy to people and situations through his smile. So I am going to pass his joy on to the Children at St. Judes.