On October 11, my Grandpa Kahn passed away. He had been ill for quite some time, and had recently developed pneumonia and was going downhill very quickly.
I am sad that he has died, and even more sad that his relationship with Jesus was unknown, as he refused to speak of God ... even when on his death bed. I will not know where my Grandpa will spend his eternity until I, myself, pass away and wake to see who has gone before me.
It is a sad, sad thing to have no remaining grandparents. As my Grandpa Kahn used to tell us when we'd see him, "Never grow old." Since growing old cannot be avoided ... I know see what he means, as I grow older myself.
I will be sharing more about my grandparents in a future post. But for now, I just wanted to get the news out to whomever may read our blog.
Jennifer
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Gerald "Bud" Kahn passed away early in the morning on Saturday, October 11, 2014.
He was born in 1926 on Valentines Day in Hastings Nebraska to Adolph and Hazel Kahn. When Gerald was three his family moved to a homestead in Mount Vernon, Washington, which Gerald later bought from his father and has made his home for the past 85 years.
The Kahn Family's arrival to their new home coincided with the beginning of The Great Depression, and the family faced many struggles. The house they had moved into burned down, taking the life of Gerald's younger sister Louise, but the resourceful family converted a recently built chicken brooding barn into their new home.
When Gerald was in the first grade at the Avon School, his leg was badly burned while playing with his brother near a campfire. He subsequently spent six months in the hospital recovering, and it is believed that this event eventually caused the failure of one of his kidneys.
Through the challenges Gerald learned the value of perseverance, patience, and hard work. Fresh out of 8th grade, Gerald became a commercial truck driver at the age of 14, even though he didn't have a driver's license. Through his deliveries throughout the state, Gerald also found construction jobs, which later led him to joining the Teamsters. During his 40 years with the Teamsters he fulfilled many roles, but ended up as the foreman of the warehouses that were responsible for building many of the local petroleum and aluminum refineries.
In 1948, Gerald met Margaret Herbert in Abbotsford, BC, and four months later made her his wife in a marriage that lasted nearly 60 years until her passing in June 2008. The two didn't have much money to start their new life together, but they did have a small home that Gerald had bought from war surplus to start a family in. Gary, Greg, and Gayle all grew up in the home and while work was slow Gerald made a total of three additions to make room for the growing family. Later in life Gerald built two duplex apartment buildings on his property, which are still being rented to this day.
Gerald recognized that he had ambition, and a drive to work. He had natural mechanical engineering and machining ability and spent thousands of hours in his own machine shop that he built at his home. His passion was building to scale, remote controlled model crawler tractors, cranes and air engines. He was a member of the Early Days Gas Engine & Tractor Association for 10 years. While he wasn't working on his models, he was able to travel the country in a motorhome with his wife, and take multiple trips to Europe.
Gerald is survived by his three children Gary Kahn of Las Vegas, NV, Greg Kahn of Mount Vernon, WA, and Gayle Holmes of LaConner, WA, his sister Sena, eight grandchildren Jennifer Lucero, Elizabeth Kahn, Adam Holmes, Andy Holmes, Peter Holmes, Marci Kahn, Gerry Kahn, Thomas Kahn, and 12 great-grandchildren. His passing was preceded by his wife Margaret, his brothers Melvin, Vern, and Wendell, and his sister Lois.
Funeral services will be held at 2:00pm on Saturday October, 18th 2014 at the Hulbush Funeral Home at 281 S. Burlington Blvd, Burlington, WA. The service will be followed by interment at the Bay View Cemetery. - See more at: http://www.legacy.com/obituaries/skagitvalleyherald/obituary.aspx?n=gerald-lee-kahn-bud&pid=172795657&fhid=6902#sthash.Xm8dNUuW.dpuf
Thursday, October 16, 2014
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