Kenneth Jurkofsky

1943 - 2017

Kenneth W. Jurkofsky passed away peacefully at his Loveland home on July 8, 2017. He was born in East Los Angeles, California on August 4, 1943 to Emil and Catherine Jurkofsky. He married Martha (Martie) Hanson in Loveland on April 22, 1972. Their son, Drew, was born in Loveland in 1976. As a child growing up in Southern California, Ken had special memories of eating watermelon in Griffith Park, fishing at Green Valley Lake and shooting at a family ranch in Fallbrook. During his teenage years, Ken learned to play and excelled at bowling. He owned two perfect bowling games by throwing 12 strikes in a row - once when he was seventeen and again two years later. Shortly thereafter, he rolled two "700" series in the same night. Ken seriously considered turning pro, but an invitation to join the armed services quickly changed his path. He joined the United States Marine Corps in September of 1961 and was stationed at Camp Pendleton, California, Okinawa, Japan and Danang, Vietnam. After his tour of duty, Ken made his way to Colorado where he found his dream job as a police officer for the Loveland Police Department. He proudly served the citizens of Loveland for 36 years believing everyone deserved respect, the opportunity of a second chance and the benefit of the doubt. Ken spent much of his time as a Crime Prevention Officer and worked tirelessly with senior citizens to prevent them from becoming victims of crime while giving them a voice in various community groups. He served on the Larimer County Triad Association, Larimer County Adult Protection Team and Loveland Senior Advisory Board. Ken was at his best when he worked with children. He was affectionately known as Ken "The Cop" to many of Loveland's kids. He founded and organized Loveland Police Department's annual Fishing Derby for 21 years and gave kids an opportunity to spend time together with their families and learn about a sport he loved. He was an advisor for the Loveland Police Explorer program and played the roles of Officer Friendly and McGruff the Crime Dog for community presentations. During his retirement, Ken enjoyed taking road trips all over the country with Martie, helping the Ameristar in Blackhawk pay its electric bills and playing golf with the old guys at the Olde Course. More than anything, he loved spending time with his grandchildren - attending their school and sporting events, teaching them to fish and making up silly songs and stories for them. Ken was a bit of a crusty character with a sense of humor and a heart of gold. He will be missed by those who loved him. Ken is survived by his wife, Martie Jurkofsky, son and daughter-in-law, Drew and Cherie Jurkofsky, grandchildren, Morgan and Isaac Jurkofsky, father-in-law, Calvin Hanson, mothers-in-law, Hazel Dunn and Dee Hanson, sister, Janice Parker, brothers, Paul, Robert and Michael Jurkofsky, sister-in-law, Doris Kuhn, brothers-in-law, Edward and Paul Hanson and Donald, Lyman and Michael Wilkinson, goddaughter and niece, Heather Leppert, and numerous other nieces and nephews. A Celebration of Life reception will be held at Viegut Funeral Home on Friday, July 21 from 1:00 - 3:00pm. He will be laid to rest in Lakeside Cemetery in Loveland, Colorado. Memorial contributions may be made in Ken's name to Viegut Funeral Home for the purchase of a park bench for the children's playground at Mehaffey Park. Go to www.viegutfuneralhome.com for condolences. The best is yet to come!