Kenneth D. Rankin

A celebration of the life of Kenneth Rankin will be 11:00 a.m., Friday, November 11, 2016 at Hayhurst Funeral Home Chapel. Friends may visit the funeral home on Thursday from 9:00 a.m. to 9:00 p.m. with family there to receive visitors from 6:00 p.m. to 8:00 p.m. Ken passed away at his home on Monday, November 7, 2016 at the age of 90. Ken was born in Enid, Oklahoma on September 1, 1926 to Fred Beal Rankin and Alice D. (Simpkins) Rankin. Ken was reared on the family farm with his three siblings until he was 18 years old. He went to school for the first 8 years at a country one room school house. He then went to high school at Carrier, Oklahoma for four years which was 8 miles from home. Living on a farm was pretty routine, milking cows, chopping wood, filling the oil lamps, feeding animals, gathering eggs and when he was a little older, harnessing the horses and hitching them to different farm machinery including the mower, wagon, hay rake, cultivator and hay buck. Some other farm work was driving the tractor to plow, springtooth, combine and more. Latter years on the farm took place during World War II when items such as gasoline and sugar were rationed. The Rankin family always had enough food and Ken never went hungry however; the rationing at times put a crimper on dating and travel. During high school there wasn’t much “single” dating, it was usually couples or triple dating. Actually, there wasn’t much dating during the war at all. In 1944 Ken graduated from high school. The same year was full of changes. Ken’s older brother was killed on a bombing run in Europe, his sister got married and he joined the United States Navy, all in a four month period. It was a difficult time for his parents. Navy boot camp was a Farragut, Idaho. After, he was stationed at the Naval Ammunition Depot Port Chicago, California. This involved loading ammunition on liberty ships for transport to the naval fleets in the Pacific. While stationed there, Ken met a family in town that impacted the rest of his life. It would take another chapter or so just to describe this large family. He met this family after he walked a daughter home from church one evening. His bunk mate eventually married this daughter. While visiting this family on “liberty” Ken couldn’t help but notice a picture on the wall of a beautiful girl. He was told she was another daughter finishing high school back in North Dakota where the family formerly lived. After graduation, she would join her family in California. The family didn’t speak about her in his presence nor did Ken ask about her. She did not know he existed until she was on her way to California after graduation. They did meet the evening she arrived in California. WOW! Shortly after Ken met Joyce, he was discharged from the navy and went back home and on to college at John Brown University for one year. After that year he worked wheat harvest and then hitchhiked to California to renew a face to face courtship with Joyce. The couple knew at that time they would eventually get married. She made a trip back to Oklahoma to meet his parents the following Christmas in 1947. At that time he was attending Enid Business College. Ken and Joyce got married March 5, 1948 and he went to work for Nash Finch Company in Enid. Later Ken was transferred to Tulsa and after a while quit Nash Finch and took a job with Sinclair. They had three children, Jerry (deceased 2003), Carol Ann and Donald Keith. After the merger of Sinclair and Arco, Ken was transferred to Dallas where he worked until retirement in 1985. After retirement he spent much time woodworking. His daughter gave him a little something that said “With the bookshelf done, Dad only needs to do about another 10,000 do-it-yourself projects to justify the cost of the tools.” How true. The family then moved to Van, Texas and built a home Ken later volunteered with the Texas Baptist Men Camp Builders. This lasted about 9 or 10 years and he really enjoyed the work but when it began to take a toll on his health, he had to give it up. Joyce wanted to move to Broken Arrow to be with some family and so they did. Ken is survived by, Wife, Joyce Rankin, Broken Arrow, OK Children, Carol Corbett and husband Robert, Broken Arrow, OK Donald “Keith” Rankin and wife Jean, Anaconda, MT Grandchildren, Ashley and Chris, Lesley and Eric, Jeremy and Terra, Kate and Steven, Stuart, Sam, Janae, Jesse, Kenna and Kurt, Janelle and Jason, Amy and Kevin Great Grandchildren, Corbett, Hudson, Everett, Breese, Evann, Paisley, Ava, Colton, Braden, Jacob, Ty Lily, Lane, Caleb, Reese, Aaron, Asher, Gracie, Samson, Ethan, Jaden, Carson, Colton, Chase, Mychael and Jared Several nieces, nephews and cousins Ken was preceded in death by his parents, son Jerry D. Rankin, brothers William Rankin and Carl Rankin, sister Irene Hapken.

Tributes

Kenneth D. Rankin

September 1, 1926 - November 7, 2016