Jack L. Kennedy

Jack Kennedy passed away at his home in Electric City, Washington, on Tuesday, June 14, 2016. Jack was born in Sandpoint, Idaho, on February 3, 1934. At the age of nine, he moved to Fruitland, Washington, with his parents, Rupert and Fern (Boyd) Kennedy. His father Rupert died in a tractor accident on their farm when Jack was 14.

Jack graduated from Columbia (Hunters) High School, where his mother, Fern, taught, in 1952. He served in the U.S. Army from 1953 to 1955. He married Merla Foisy, of Coulee Dam, Washington, in 1956. They farmed for several years near the original family farm in Fruitland. Jack operated a dairy farm north of Chewelah, Washington, at Bluecreek in the 1960s, also working at the Chewelah post office many of those years.

After working in the Midwest for a couple of years, Jack worked on the construction of the Third Powerhouse at Grand Coulee Dam for one year. He then returned to farming in the Columbia Basin, initially in the Mae Valley area of Moses Lake, Washington, in 1972, buying a farm near Othello, Washington, in 1976. Jack lost his wife, Merla, to cancer in 1978. He married another wonderful woman, Margaret Dynes Quiroga, in 1979.

In 1981, Jack went to work for Washington State University on their research farms in Othello and Prosser, Washington. Following his retirement in 1999, Jack and Maggie moved to the Grand Coulee Dam area.

Jack loved horses, raising purebred Arabians for many years. He also loved fishing, hunting, reading, watching John Wayne movies and winning at pinochle. His greatest love was his family.

Jack is survived by his wife, Maggie; younger brothers: Gene (Marlene) Kennedy of Fruitland, and Glenn (Carol) Kennedy, of Deer Park; sons: Jerry (Susan) and Merle Kennedy of Electric City; daughters: Diana (Tom) Chaplin of Moses Lake and Colleen (John) Quicksall of Carnation, Washington; 10 grandchildren and 15 great-grandchildren. Jack was preceded in death by his mother, Fern Kennedy Miles May, in 1996, his older sister, Margaret (Bob) Hessner of Salmon, Idaho; and his stepfather, Harold Miles of Colville.

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, June 25, at 11 a.m., at the Grand Coulee Community Church, 405 Center St., Grand Coulee, Washington. A salad luncheon will follow.