Kenneth LeRoy Kidder Jr. was born June 28, 1934, in Belmont Shores of Long Beach, California, and died February 25, 2020, at Wyoming Medical Center in Casper, Wyoming of heart failure.
Ken graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School in Long Beach, California in 1952. Upon graduating high school he served in the Korean Conflict in the US Navy mostly on the aircraft carrier USS Boxer as a signalman. He was discharged in 1959. Years later Ken received an Ambassador for Peace medal from the South Korean government for his service.
After his military career, Ken was employed at McDonnell Douglas Aircraft in Long Beach, California, and eventually took a position as a supervisor of production at Autonetics in Anaheim, California, a purchasing agent division of North American Rockwell, a company he stayed with until he retired. During his tenure with Rockwell, he relocated to Illinois.
He married Arlene Heppner on September 4, 1959. They were married for 23 years and had two sons. As the father of Brian and Christopher, Ken was a scoutmaster for Boy Scout Troop 221 in Long Beach in the early 1970s. He enjoyed backpacking on the John Muir Trail in the Sierra’s with his son. Ken had an avid passion for nature and caring for the environment and all the wonders of the world. His hobbies included photography, backpacking, cooking, and reading which he pursued with keen interest. Ken’s many dogs including Bitsy and Casey were his constant companions.
With his second wife Maia, he embraced the RV lifestyle for three years, and finally settled in the Red Canyon area of Lander, Wyoming. They took occasional RV trips in the southwest, and then enjoyed international travel, particularly to South America with organized tour groups.
Over the years Ken took photography classes with experts including John Sexton, who was an assistant to Ansel Adams. While traveling in the RV he would set up a temporary darkroom to process his prints. Eventually, he also pursued color digital photography. Ken exhibited his work in selected Rocky Mountain galleries, winning several awards for western landscapes and historic buildings. The Wyoming Arts Council Professional Development Career Advancement awarded a grant for him to deepen his photography talent that included an exhibit in Nicolaysen Museum in Casper, Wyoming in 2001.
He will always be remembered for his gentle caring heart, his humorous and quiet ways, and his creativity.
A memorial service to celebrate Ken’s life will be held in the future.