0489 – SPOKANE NORTH (WA) CONGREGATION : Bell, Kenneth D – Obituary (2008)
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Ken D. Bell . |
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description of work: An obituary for Kenneth Doane Bell as published in the Daily News-Miner, Fairbanks, Alaska. Although living near Seattle WA at the time of his death, Ken had also been an active member of the RLDS Church/Community of Christ in the Spokane District and then Central Washington District. tags: Ken Bell, Kenneth Doane Bell II, Marilyn Bell, Marilyn Charlotte Porter, Helen Wilbur Bell, Kenneth Doane Bell III, Fairbanks Alaska, Karen Diane Bell, Kifleyesus Amar, Elsabet Girma, Jay Inslee, Washington Education Associationi, Darrington Washington, Kiwanis, Atsuko Kawase, Emi Bell, Kenneth Doane Bell IV, Karen Diane Bell, Kifle Amar, Ghidena Haile, Fedden Amar, Mrad Amar, Sergei Amar, Elsa Girma Anderson, Mark Anderson, Christian Anderson, Sue Camp, Paul Camp, Bert Bell, Becky Bell, Patricia White, Donna Maxine Mansor, Monte Cady, Barbara Cady, RLDS Church, Reorganized Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, Community of Christ |
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Kenneth Doane Bell |
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Kenneth Doane Bell, 71, of Darrington, Washington, died Sunday, September 7, 2008, at Harborview Hospital in Seattle. Services will be conducted at 2 p.m. Saturday, September 20, at Community of Christ church, 20012 Filbert Drive, Bothell, WA. |
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Ken was born January 25, 1937, in Fairbanks, Alaska, to Kenneth Doane Bell and his wife, Helen Wilbur Bell. Ken was reared in Fairbanks and graduated from Fairbanks High School and the University of Alaska. |
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On May 21, 1960, he married Marilyn Charlotte Porter and together they had two children, Kenneth Doane Bell III and Karen Diane Bell. When Karen was a senior in high school, they took in a wonderful child from Africa, Kifleyesus Amar, who truly became the child of their hearts. Later, Elsabet Gima came to their home and she also was beloved by the family. |
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After completing a stint in the Army, Ken worked in a grocery store to put himself through college, and then began his career by teaching high school in Fairbanks, and junior high and elementary school in the Anchorage area. Ken quickly became aware that the better the working conditions are for teachers, the better the education is for the students. He became a negotiator and worked 20 years for the Washington Education Association. Ken then served Rep. Jay Inslee in Washington, D.C., for part of a term. Subsequently, he worked for the Wyoming Education Association for four years. |
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Ken was ordained as a young man, and the church called him to pastor a congregation in Niagara Falls, N.Y. Ken loved the people of his congregation. In 2005, he retired and moved to Darrington to be closer to the grandchildren. He taught as a substitute teacher in Darrington so he could know the children of the community. |
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Ken was part of many organizations throughout his lifetime. He held a number of positions in scouting. When he was a young man he became a member of the Lion’s Club. He served as president of the Alumni Association for the University of Alaska, and later served as president of the board of regents. He found working on the boards for preschools especially rewarding as he helped to make things better for young children. |
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In about 1993, he joined Kiwanis because of its focus on young children. He has been a distinguished club president in three states, a distinguished lieutenant governor in two states, and at the time of his death, he was the TAG (Together Achieving Growth) team chair for the Pacific Northwest District of Kiwanis. He loved the difference Kiwanis made in the lives of children he knew personally. |
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In addition to his wife, Marilyn, he is survived by four children: Kenneth Doane III, his wife, Atsuko Kawase, and their two children Emi and Kenneth Doane IV; Karen Diane; Kifle Amar, his wife, Ghidena Haile, and their three children, Fedden, Mrad and Sergei; and Elsa Girma Anderson, her husband, Mark, and their two sons, Mark and Christian. Ken also is survived by his sister, Sue Camp, and her husband, Paul; his brother, Bert, and his wife, Becky, a half-sister, Patricia White, and a stepsister, Donna Maxine Mansor of Henderson, Nevada; and his best friend, Monte Cady, and his wife, Barbara, of Gig Harbor, WA. |
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Memorials may be sent to the Darrington Kiwanis Club for the Ken Bell Memorial Scholarship in care of Marilyn Bell, P.O. Box 699, Darrington, WA 98241. |
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Ken loved his God and spent his life trying to feed his sheep. |
