Kenneth Raymond BALDUS

BALDUS, MCINTYRE, REED, BELSHAW, SAWYER, RIVERA, ANGULO

Posted By: Sarah Thorson Little (email)
Date: 9/23/2015 at 23:26:27

May 18, 1918 --- August 6, 2015

Kenneth Raymond Baldus was the most wonderful man. He was intelligent, talented, giving, kind, loving, and a hard-working man who deserves to be honored for a life well lived. Born in Goldfield, Iowa to his German father, Dr. Charles C Baldus and Irish mother, Hazel (McIntyre) Baldus on May 18, 1918. His father was a dentist and farm land owner; while his mother was a dental assistant and together they raised a young man who was well brought up, driven, and focused on succeeding in his career pursuits and his family.

During this time, life was much more difficult then we know of today. Children often died because of illness or disease and in October of 1929 The Great Depression hit the country after a stock market crash. Kenneth kept a positive outlook on life always pushing forward and never giving up. As a young man Kenneth enjoyed hunting, fishing, drama, information, maps, and history. He was an outgoing boy and a dog lover he loved to tell stories about all his dogs. His dog’s names were Spotty, Skippy, and Fluffy. Ken loved being outdoors spending it with friends and family and he would always say, “What a beautiful day”.

Kenneth was a fine student who participated in glee club, declamatory, class plays, honor role, and could read Latin and French. Kenneth was Senior Class President and graduated with honors as co-Salutatorian from Goldfield High School. He continued his education at Iowa State University and graduated in 1940 with a B.S. in Science majoring in Industrial Economics. He was in the Inkhorn Honors Society, social fraternity and president of Theta Chi, participated in track and debate, as well as earned 25% of all college expenses.

Later, Kenneth received an MBA from University of Chicago in Business Administration and was hired by Parsons College as a Professor of Business and Economics in Fairfield, Iowa. He had to stop teaching because in June of 1942 Kenneth was drafted into the Army during WWII. He was eventually stationed at Fort Leavenworth, Kansas and this is where he met Louise Reed. Achieving Technician Fifth Grade in the US Army, Kenneth Raymond Baldus married Louise Reed on July 31, 1943. Ken and Louise remained in Fort Leavenworth Kansas after getting married and after the WWII, Kenneth worked at the prison. Kenneth and his wife Louise eventually settled in Portland, Oregon. With a lot of hard work and with the help of a business partner he became a prominent business man starting up a vending machine business selling ice cream, coffee, and cigarettes. He was a corn and soy bean land owner and was a very savvy and successful stock investor. In November of 1950, they were blessed with one son, Bruce Reed Baldus. Eventually they built their dream house in Portland and settled down to raise their son. Ken knew how to play the piano and Louise could also play the violin; they both had a love for music. Kenneth and Louise were happily married for 57 years.

The house in Oregon was filled with so many wonderful memories that Kenneth helped create with his son. Even his sixties and seventies he was still walking several miles and play golf almost every day as his normal routine. He also made sure to make more memories with his granddaughter. Every summer Becky went and he made sure to take her fishing, bike riding, horseback riding, to Mount Hood, roller skating at Oaks Park, picking fresh fruits and vegetables, and telling her bedtime stories. Ken and Louise would spend the winters in California and would spend most of their time with their family Bruce and Becky. He even made time to take Becky’s brothers, Jeremy and Kevin Belshaw, fishing when they were little too.

When Kenneth and Louise’s great grandson was born they both enjoyed spending time with him. Louise was getting near the end of her life but she loved seeing her great grandson. After the passing of Kenneth’s wife Louise at 92 in December of 2000 he decided he would sell the house in Oregon. Eventually Ken moved back to Iowa with his old high school sweet heart Dee Sawyer, who was also left widowed. Ken continued to be active by going on walks, playing golf, playing bridge, hanging out with friends and joining a bowling league. In his 80s he even tried riding a bicycle in the snow and fell into a snow bank but luckily he didn’t hurt himself and he talked about going ice skating on the frozen lake. Dee put her foot down and told him he couldn’t ride his bicycle anymore or ice skate on the lake because I bet he would have tried. Together Kenneth and Dee lived very happily in a house on a small lake in Mason City, Iowa for about eight years. Dee did eventually pass away in 2009 and that is when he moved here to California to be closer to his family.

Before he moved back to California he made sure to spend quality one on one time with his great-grandson teaching him how to fish on the Lake in Mason City, Iowa. He also made sure to spend quality time with his granddaughter Becky, her husband Ricardo Rivera, and Chihuahua named Spike. He introduced his family to his friends, Dee’s family, and made sure to see his family in Iowa before leaving. Kenneth was always devoted to his family and made sure they were always taken care of.

In 2009, when he moved California, he moved into an independent living for seniors in Long Beach. Ken made some friends, participated in activities, and continued to go for his daily walks. In January of 2012 Ken had a heart attack and lost 40% function of his heart and a possible stroke which led to him being unable to communicate verbally. After his heart attack his granddaughter Becky gave leave at her job and convinced Kenneth to move in with her and her family. In April he went through a robotic bypass on his heart and in May he turned 94 years old. He was very sick and weak but he made a full recovery except he was never able to say the words he wanted. In 2014 Kenneth and Becky’s immediate family all moved into a house in Lakewood, California. Kenneth was very happy here and loved to spend time with his German Shepard named Five O, Spike the Chihuahua, and his family. Kenneth would go for his daily walks multiple times every day of his life until the last few months of his life. May 18, 2015 he had his last birthday turning 97 years old. Soon after he broke his hip it had healed but he was unable to fully recover. Kenneth was a fighter, strong, and loving man who lived a long beautiful life.

He made a great life for himself and his family. He remained very social and busy enjoying life fully, he was an avid fly fisherman, loved keeping up with politics, walking, reading, watching westerns, listening to music, and spending time with his friends and family. He was always very active his entire life keeping up with his son, grand kids and great grand kid. Kenneth enjoyed his life to the fullest and made people’s lives around him better too. He was kind and generous to many people throughout his life and would go out of his way to help or encourage children even if they were of no relation.

Kenneth is survived by his son Bruce Reed Baldus, granddaughter Becky Louise Baldus Rivera, and his great grandson Sebastian Ravi Angulo. He was greatly loved and will be greatly missed by all who was blessed to have known Kenneth Raymond Baldus. He was a strong man even through his last years. He was a fighter and compassionate man who loved his family with every ounce of his being. He lived a long life, 97 years, and saw the world through many different stages. He loved every bit of it. He blessed everyone he knew and made everyone honored and grateful to be a part of his legacy. His love for life will continue on through those he has left behind. Rest in peace Kenneth Raymond Baldus, you were an amazing man and will live on in our hearts forever...

Memorial Service
2:00 pm, Saturday, September 19, 2015
Luyben Dilday Mortuary Chapel
5161 E. Arbor Road Long Beach, California

http://www.luybendilday.com/memsol.cgi?user_id=1638813