Kenneth Scott Carman

Kenneth S. Carman, 97, of Silvis, Illinois, formerly of Burlington, Iowa, and Salina, Kansas, died Tuesday, November 28, 2017, at New Perspective Senior Living, Silvis.

Graveside Memorial Service will be held on Saturday, May 19, 2018 at 4:00 pm at the Pine Knot Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Salvation Army. 

Kenneth Scott Carman was born October 2, 1920, in Shantou, China, to his missionary parents, Rev. Newton H. and Dr. Mildred A. (Scott) Carman. The oldest of three children, his family returned to the States when he was six years old. He grew up in the nomadic life of a preacher’s kid. The two places his family lived longest were Des Moines, Iowa, and Corvallis, Oregon. 

His college education was interrupted by World War II, during which he served in the U.S. Army for 3 ½ years. He served on various bases in the Western states and in the Philippines. Returning to finish his degree and start his Masters in Berkeley, California, he met his wife, Dora Edna Creekmore. The couple married on November 21, 1948, in Knoxville, Tennessee. She died in June of 2016.

Kenneth and Edna planned on being missionaries and accepted a call to work at a Christian school on the island of Leyte in the Philippines. While there, their daughter, Kathy, was born. They returned to the States in 1953, and Kenneth started working for Kansas Wesleyan University in Salina, where his two sons were born. Kenneth worked at KWU teaching math and science until his retirement.

He volunteered as the first male “pink lady” at the Salina Hospital and at Little House, a local non-profit, as an ESL teacher. He also taught Sunday School for many years at Church of the Cross in Salina. He was also affiliated with First Baptist and Quayle Methodist at times during his life there. 

In 2011, Kenneth and Edna moved to Burlington, Iowa, to live near their daughter. Kenneth liked to explore the sights around the Mississippi during their years at Sunnybrook Assisted Living. He also loved visits from family members and Parkside Church.

In 2017, Ken moved to New Perspective in Silvis, so he, his daughter, and son-in-law, Tyrone, could live closer to family. Kenneth loved Jesus, books, photography and camping. He was amazed that he lived so long, surviving several health crises’, including one which left him with a substantial hearing loss while he was still young.

He is survived by three children, Kathy (Tyrone) Henderson of Moline; T. Scott (Teresa) Carman of Patterson, California, and Paul D. (Nara) Carman of Northbrook, Illinois; numerous grandchildren and great-grandchildren; a sister, Cynthia Wallace of New York; and a sister-in-law, Katherine Carman of Portland, Oregon. He was preceded in death by his wife; a brother, Donald Carman; and a brother-in-law, Hue Wallace.

Pine Knot Funeral Home is assisting the family of Mr. Kenneth Carman.