Kenneth Leroy Ames

Kenneth Leroy Ames, 1929 to 2019, passed away March 20. He joins his wife Dorothy who preceded him in death, and is survived by his three children, Annette, Arlo, and Harold, by five grandchildren and by ten great grandchildren. A longtime resident of Aurora, Colorado, he had recently moved to Albuquerque to spend some time with his eldest son.

Ken's career included firing and hostling on the Big Boy locomotives, artillery service in Germany in the U.S. Army during the Korean War, a Bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering at the University of Wyoming funded by the G.I. Bill, mechanical engineering on the Apollo space program and in weapons demilitarization, and maintenance work at Safeway Bakery, Sigman Meat, and at an apartment complex. He did volunteer work at the Aurora Police Department and the Aurora Public Library. At the library, he worked with computers and made rubber band guns to shoot the librarians with. He had deep technical knowledge and a wealth of amazing real-life stories about working with history-making machines and people.

Ken was kind and generous. He was a handy man who knew how to make and fix things, and was always willing to help every neighbor. He believed everybody was his neighbor. Dad loved to tinker. He brought home a lot of things other people thought were junk, and frequently made them whole again. Of course, this did mean he kept a lot of things people thought were junk. He had lived through hardship, and was frugal with resources. He never passed up on an opportunity to learn, studying languages, abacuses, computers, animals, and music, even though he was profoundly hard of hearing. He learned to play ""Mary had a Little Lamb"" on the piano at age 88. He was a ready volunteer, including at the Aurora Public Library and as a blood donor (over 8 gallons). He was an advocate for animals, reminding us that if a dog bit you, maybe it was you who was doing something wrong.

While in the service, he took the chance to tour Germany on a motorcycle. There, he learned to speak some German, and learned to love the people, and the friendly way they treated him. He considered his great grandchildren his ""Schatze,” or great treasure. He made every stranger feel like a member of the family.

Dad, we miss you. We miss your hugs. We miss your stories.
Grandpa, please save us a piece of P-I-E and some mint jelly.

Kenneth has donated his body to medical research. After the doctors are through using it to support learning, his remains will join Dorothy’s in the Colorado Mountains.
The family would like to thank the kind, dedicated staff at The Bridge at Garden Plaza of Aurora and at Morning Star in Albuquerque, and everybody who befriended and/or patiently cared for Ken in his final years. Your help meant everything.

Celebration of Life: May 11, 2019 2:30 pm

Horan & McConaty - SE Denver/Aurora
11150 E. Dartmouth Ave.
Aurora, CO 80014