"Your dad is a saint!"

We heard that a lot growing up.

Kenneth Raymond Prouty was born in Iowa on 12/7/1940, and died of vascular dementia and heart failure in Creve Coeur, MO on Monday, 2/13/23, at 12:49am. He was 82 years old. There was a brilliant rainbow in the sky that day. Loved ones who passed before him include his parents, Ray and Ruth Prouty, his sister Lucy Russell, his sons Keenan and Kenneth Prouty, and his wife Rita Elaine Ferguson Prouty. He loved his dogs - Sammy, Bigelow, Marty. He is survived by his children Kendra (Matthew), Jayson (Stephanie), Gina (Travis), Daniel (Nekeisha) and Sarina. He was extremely proud of his children and was a kind, nurturing father. He also had several grandchildren – Zinnia, Dallas, Bryce, Jonah, Sage, Jack, and Seth.

A big extrovert, he played football in high school, as well as the trumpet, and got to march in the Rose Bowl Parade. He proudly served in the Navy from 1962-1966, mostly stationed in Puerto Rico and Maine. He loved beaches and tropical locales. During his service in the "canoe club", he asked a buddy to help him find a girl for a pen pal. Randomly, he was connected to Rita, a nurse in Iowa. They fell fast in love, and were eager to meet, get married, and have children. They got married November 23, 1966.
He enjoyed college, was a whiz at Calculus, and got his degree in Electrical Engineering. He loved all his jobs - repairing 300 foot high radio towers, television repair, working in a funeral home, and even selling beer at the race car track. He had an Amateur Extra Radio license with the Federal Communications Commission, under the handle W0KRP. He LOVED cars - especially hot rods and convertibles. His favorite car was a red Mazda Miata convertible he called "ZOOMIE." He LOVED babies, just adored them! They had their first child in 1973, and it went girl-boy-girl-boy-girl from there.

He had a 5th degree black belt in Tae Kwon Do, and taught children for years. He had a yin yang tattoo on his left arm. He worked at Southwestern Bell for 30 years and was a lifelong member of the Pioneers volunteer organization. He took early retirement, just in time for a big heart attack that required a quadruple bypass. After he recovered from that, he worked at St. Louis Lambert International Airport as a TSA agent. He received an award from the US Department of Homeland Security for creating a more efficient technology program.

After that, he started his own pet sitting business, Next Best Friend. After he sold his business, he took a job at Enterprise Rent-A-Car. He loved driving all over town and meeting new people. He finally had to retire permanently to care for his sick wife. Oh yeah, in addition to raising five kids, he spent decades caring for his chronically ill wife. She could be a bit fractious, which is why people always said, "Your dad is a saint!"

He loved the Dallas Cowboys, the St Louis Cardinals, beer and cigars, nachos and margaritas. His favorite movies were The Jerk, Weekend at Bernies, Splash, Planes, Trains and Automobiles, Dumb and Dumber, and National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation. Yes, Christmas was his favorite holiday. He always wanted to help, and he always wanted to share. He wouldn't eat a thing without insisting you have some of it, too.
He was able to visit 49 states during his lifetime, with the last one being Hawaii! And he got to ride in a helicopter a few months before he died, he LOVED it! He felt so free.

We love you Daddy-O!!! Icky dicky dicky deem, have a lovely lovely dream....

Celebration of Life:
Thursday, February 23rd, 10am-12pm
Ethical Society of St. Louis
9001 Clayton Road
St. Louis, MO 63117
In lieu of flowers, please donate to CARE STL, or your favorite dog rescue.