Obituary
Ken Kavanaugh
Ken Kavanaugh, 84 years old, passed away on Sunday, October 14, 2018 in La Crosse, WI. He was one of seven children born to Richard and Ellen (Jensen) Kavanaugh.
Ken was a graduate of Aquinas High School and UW-La Crosse. He was a former board member and past president of the UW-L Alumni Association.
He participated in numerous college theatre productions at both UW-L and Viterbo. While in a show at Viterbo he met and fell in love with a player name Shirley Girard. They married in August 1959 and celebrated their 59th anniversary in August 2018.
They celebrated their 50th anniversary with a wonderful party hosted by their children and a beautiful trip to St. Thomas.
Ken spent nearly two years in the U.S. Army with most of that time in Korea after the Armistice.
Ken was employed for 30 years with the State of Wisconsin Job Service, including 5 years as District Director in Kenosha and 20 years as District Director in La Crosse. After his retirement from state service he worked for 5 years as Personnel Manager for the La Crosse Visiting Nurses Association.
Ken was a loving husband, father, and grandfather. He was a gentle and kind person who had a quick Irish wit and loved a good party!
Ken is survived by his wife Shirley, his daughter Maureen Porath (John), and sons, Kevan (Susan), Kelly, and Kerry. He is also survived by 9 grandchildren: Tony Kavanaugh, Cherish Kavanaugh, Nikki Gurley (Nathan), Glenn Porath (Emily), Trystan, Connor, Kylan & Kalyx Kavanaugh, and one other grandson & 3 great-grandchildren Carter Simons & Daemyen & Deklin Gurley. He is also survived by 2 siblings Kathleen Kavanaugh and Eileen Skaggs, and many nieces and nephews. He was pre-deceased by his parents Richard & Ellen Kavanaugh, sisters Mary Jean Kavanaugh, Lorraine Kavanaugh, Berni Raymond, infant brother Clayton, and granddaughter Bridget Gonchar.
A special thank you to the nurses and doctors at the Mayo Cancer Center who took such loving care of Ken in his 9 year battle with multiple myeloma. Another special thank you to Mayo ICU nurses Jeremy and Rachel who made his last two days so comfortable. Last but not least, Dr. James Mannion who was our devoted family physician for 28 years.
There will be a visitation from 10:00-11:00 a.m. with a funeral service following, on October 19th at Mary, Mother of the church on 2006 Weston St. La Crosse, WI. There will be a luncheon at the Moose Lodge on Ward Ave in La Crosse. following the funeral service.
In lieu of flowers, memorials are preferred.
Ken was a good man. I have very fond memories of him and Shirley when I was a kid.