Obituary of Kenneth Russell Sever

<b>Obituary</b> Kenneth Russell Sever was born on May 27th, 1927 in Madison Indiana and passed from this life on September 20th, 2012 at his residence in Lexington, KY. Kenneth is survived by the following: A younger brother and sister, Paul Dowling and Betty Conover and a sister-like cousin, Betty King; 4 children, Debbie and her husband Noah, Daryl and his wife Sharon, David and his wife Brenda and Don and his wife Sherry; 8 grandchildren...Amanda, Casey, Ben, Nikki, Shannon, Lindsey, Aaron and Hannah; and 3 great grandchildren, Brandon, Emma, and Wyatt (born 9-21-2012). As the second of 4 children born to Florence Dowling, he was predeceased by his older brother, Freddie Dale Smith. Paul Dowling, his younger brother, resides in northern Kentucky and Betty Dowling Conover, his younger sister, resides in southern Indiana and Betty King resides in Central Indiana. Kenneth grew up in southern Indiana during the depression among his siblings, cousins, aunts and uncles. He graduated from Saluda High School in 1945, located in Saluda Township in Jefferson County Indiana. Standing tall at 5 feet, 7 inches, Kenneth was the center of his high school basketball team. Kenneth was able to attend his high school class reunion almost every year until this year. Only 2 classmates remain from his graduating class. Following graduation, Kenneth enlisted in the U.S. Navy and served proudly from May 1945 to August 1946 aboard the ship the U.S.S. San Juan, an anti-aircraft carrier. Kenneth was in Tokyo Bay on September 2, 1945 and witnessed the unconditional surrender of Japan, presided over by General Douglas MacArthur on board the U.S.S. Missouri. Upon being honorably discharged from service, Kenneth returned home, obtained business degree and worked at various jobs in the insurance industry in Louisville, KY. Kenneth married Mildred Kean on June 26th, 1953 in Jeffersonville, Indiana Kenneth and Mildred liked the letter D, as they had 4 children and named them Debbie, Daryl, David and Don. Debbie, Daryl and David were all born in Jeffersonville, Indiana. Following Kenneth's acceptance of a position with the University of Kentucky Hospital, the family moved to Lexington, KY in 1961 and in 1964 Don was born. Kenneth and Mildred put down roots in Lexington, raising his family on Argyle Drive. As Christians, they joined Southside Church of Christ in the early 1960's, raised their children with Christian values and remained committed members until their passing. They sent all of their children through Tates Creek High School and the University of Kentucky. Kenneth himself converted from a "Hoosier" to a "Wildcat", was a season ticket holder, and rarely missed a home UK basketball game. Kenneth devoted the majority of his work life to the career he built at the University of Kentucky Hospital. He retired as the Director of Patient Accounts in 1994 after 33 years of service. Most importantly, Kenneth was a loving, caring and devoted husband to his wife, Mildred. When she became ill in the mid 1980's and quickly needed around-the-clock care, he arranged for her care at home while he worked, and on nights and weekends took care of her himself. Following his retirement in 1994, he devoted himself exclusively to her care until her passing in 1998. <b>Funeral Information</b> Funeral Services will be 5pm Sunday at Clark Legacy Center, Brannon Crossing. Visitation will be 2pm Sunday until the time of service.