Kenneth Clair Allen

1924 - 2010

Kenneth Clair Allen November 18, 1924 - November 11, 2010 Ken was born in Long Beach, California, on November 18, 1924. His family moved to Bakersfield in the early 1930's and he graduated from Kern County Union High School in 1942 and spent the next three years in the United States Air Force, where he flew thirty missions over Germany as pilot of a B-17 Bomber, during World War II. Upon his return from the service, Ken entered the University of Southern California and graduated in 1948. While in college, he was a member of Phi Sigma Kappa fraternity and enjoyed a fellowship that has lasted throughout his lifetime. Alaska beckoned and he took his fledgling family to the Great Land during the period when Alaska became a State. Part time bush pilot, guide, big game hunter, and tugboat operator, Ken had the time of his life flying his small plane throughout the wilderness. His children, Monty, Holly, and Wylie are still firmly held to that northern state while Ken returned south to marry Dorothy, his beloved wife and companion of some thirty plus years. Ken and Dorothy have traveled the world and crisscrossed the U.S. many times in their motor home. He has truly been blessed with a remarkable life full of great memories. Lifetime member of the Elks Lodge, charter member of the Bakersfield Country Club, and Bakersfield Racquet Club, where he and his buddies battled every noon for umpteen years. He was also a longtime member of the Racquet Club Board of Directors. A compulsive writer of letters to the Bakersfield Californian, Ken enjoyed discourse on almost any subject imaginable. A lucky man indeed to have tasted the very best that life can offer. Ken is leaving behind a broken hearted wife, my best friend, Dorothy Allen; brother, Chet Allen; children, Wylie Allen and Monty Allen; step-children, Debbie Smith, Valerie Pettit, and Patty Mula; 2 grandchildren and 3 great-grandchildren. He is preceded in death by his daughter, Holly Allen. A special "thank you" to all the nurses and staff at Optimal Hospice for their care and support during this difficult time. Memorial service will be held on Thursday, November 18, 2010, at 10:00 a.m. at Greenlawn Southwest Memorial Chapel, 2739 Panama Ln. Visitation is not scheduled. Greenlawn Southwest Mortuary www.bakersfield.com/obits