Kenneth Thomas Sorensen Sr.

1923 - 2022

MYSTIC - The Greatest Generation has lost one of its finest sons.

Kenneth Thomas Sorensen Sr., of Mystic, died peacefully on Sunday, Sept. 11, 2022. He was two months shy of 99.

Ken leaves behind a family that loved him immensely: his devoted wife, Colleen (Janeiro), with whom he shared 71 years of marriage; three sons, Keith, and wife Tammy (Graham), of Pawcatuck, Kevin, and partner Catherine Barnett, of East Lyme, and Kenneth Jr., of Pawcatuck; a daughter, Lynn Flanagan, and husband Bill, of Old Lyme; and two grandsons, Liam and Patrick Flanagan, whom he adored and helped raise.

He was predeceased by two brothers, Jack and Donald, and a sister, Dorothy.

Ken was born in Jersey City, N.J., on Nov. 24, 1923, a child of the Depression era. He was raised in North Stonington and attended Wheeler High School, where he was a standout pitcher who led the small-school Lions to an undefeated season in 1940.

The 6-foot-1 left-hander dutifully put his baseball dreams aside upon graduating from Wheeler in 1943 - he passed on a tryout offer from the Boston Red Sox - to join the war effort, signing with the U.S. Navy to fight in World War II. He served proudly aboard the USS Arkansas as a loader for the 40 mm guns. He served in both theaters of the war, as the Arkansas shelled the shores of Normandy during D-Day and did the same in the Pacific at Iwo Jima and Okinawa.

After the war, he was honorably discharged by the Navy and returned to North Stonington, finding work as a painter and a carpenter with his Uncle Otto. He had a brief stint at the Velvet Mill in Stonington Borough before spending nearly 40 years at Arwood Corporation in Groton. He was a former volunteer fireman, a member of the Mystic VFW and a longtime parishioner at St. Patrick Church in Mystic.

He met the love of his life, Colleen, in 1949. They married in 1951 and soon started a family, which became Ken's world. Everything he did was for his family. It was his focus, purpose and passion, and he worked hard to provide for Colleen and their four children. He took overtime at Arwood anytime he could get it and even worked a weekend shift at Janeiro's variety store in Mystic, which his beloved mother and father-in-law, Antoinette and Manuel Janeiro, had built in 1961.

But make no mistake, Ken loved to have fun, too. He liked to laugh, spend time with his friends and travel, with trips to Europe and the Caribbean ranking among the best times of his life.

He also liked his sports, reading newspaper sports sections daily and watching on TV the exploits of his favorite teams, the New York Yankees and football Giants, with the latter causing him great frustration in recent years.
A kind, sweet and gentle man who always had a positive demeanor - and delivered one of the firmest handshakes you'll ever come across - he will be dearly missed.

A funeral mass will be celebrated Monday, Sept. 19, at 10 a.m. at St. Patrick Church, 32 East Main St., Mystic. Burial with full military honors will follow at St. Patrick Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donations made in Ken's honor to the Tunnel to Towers Foundation (t2t.org). For online condolences, please visit mysticfuneralhome.com.

The family would also like to thank the staff at Apple Rehab Mystic and the office of Dr. Brian Williams for their care and compassion over the last month.