Kenneth Winter "Boo" Kaynor

KAYNOR, Kenneth Winter "Boo" Kenneth Winter "Boo" Kaynor, 88, died peacefully on September 16, 2008 under hospice care at Hebrew Health Care in West Hartford. Born in Springfield, MA on January 25, 1920, he was the fourth of six children of the late William Kirk Kaynor and Alice Chapin (Reed) Kaynor. He grew up as part of a large extended family living at Edgewood Gardens in Springfield, and in the upper village at Granville, MA. In his youth, he was a proud member of the "Wolves" who roamed the floor at Myron G. Ryder's dancing school in Springfield. He graduated from the Lebanon School (now Darrow) in New Lebanon, NY in 1939 and from Springfield College in 1947. He received his Master's Degree from Springfield College in 1948 and pursued a Ph.D. in Physics at the University of Connecticut. During World War II, he served as a pilot in the U.S. Army Air Corps. Assigned to the Air Transport Command, he flew multi-engine aircraft to destinations around the world and augmented his military stipend by playing bridge. He taught mathematics at East Hartford High School where he was track coach and also served as Director of Psychological Testing for the town of East Hartford, leaving in 1952 to accept a position at Pratt & Whitney Aircraft (now part of United Technologies). There, his projects as a computer systems analyst included the development of early meteorological models in an effort to provide more accurate weather forecasting techniques. After his retirement from United Technologies, he joined the computation group at the Institute of Living in Hartford. Following a whirlwind courtship in 1946, he married Doris Eleanor Bower of Springfield, MA to whom he remained happily wedded for nearly 62 years. From 1952 to 1978 they lived on The Green in Tolland, where they were faithful members of the choir and numerous boards at the United Congregational Church. Ken served several terms as Chairman of the town's Board of Education and also as a member of the Tolland Volunteer Fire Department. After moving to West Hartford in 1978, they joined the Flagg Road United Church of Christ where he was a member of the choir, served on the Board of Deacons and the Board of Christian Service, and also as a member of the Hartmeadow Board of Trustees. He was an avid gardener, taking great pleasure in sharing a variety of fresh, homegrown vegetables with family, friends, and those in need. From his teens until the last year of his life, he relished time spent boating, fishing, and digging clams in West Harpswell, ME. Music was a central part of his life, and his tastes were eclectic. He especially loved the close harmonies of a capella quartets, singing with family and friends, with the "Chirp and Burp Society", and as a member of the Hartford Chapter of the Society for the Preservation and Enjoyment of Barbershop Quartet Singing in America. He is survived by his wife, Debbie of West Hartford; two brothers, William "Guppie" Kaynor of Suffield, and Edward "Plug" Kaynor of Amherst, MA; close cousins John "Weed" Reed and Cynthia (Reed) "Cid" Sampson, both of Easthampton, MA; three sons, The Rev. Robert K. Kaynor and wife Sue of Durham, NC, Mark D. Kaynor and wife Julie of Deltaville and Blacksburg, VA, and Peter J. Kaynor and wife Sandra of Peru, ME; grandson Jeseph Kaynor and great granddaughter Tiger Lily both of Wilmington, NC; numerous four-legged grandpets; and many friends and relatives. A graveside Time of Remembrance with interment of ashes will take place at 10:30 a.m. on Saturday, September 27, at the Oak Grove Cemetery in Springfield, MA, and a Memorial Service celebrating his life will follow on Sunday, September 28, at 2 p.m. in West Hartford at the Flagg Road United Church of Christ. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Ken's name to the Darrow School, 110 Darrow Road, New Lebanon, NY 12125, or to the Flagg Road UCC Memorial Music Fund, 134 Flagg Road, West Hartford, CT 06117.