Kenneth Eugene Dudley

Kenneth Eugene Dudley of Grand Ledge, MI entered eternity with God, his Creator. Ken, age 83, was born in Lansing, MI on June 16, 1939 to Clarence William and Sara Alice Jane Dudley. He was a loving husband, dad, grandpa, great grandpa, and a cherished friend. Ken died wrapped in the love of his family July 6, 2022.

Ken grew up on the north-side of Lansing and graduated from Eastern High School, Lansing, MI and attended Lansing Community College. He was active in sports, Boy Scouts, and church camps. Ken played baseball and basketball at Eastern High School. He mentioned that he was too small to play football and would have gotten crushed had he tried :) Ken started out in Cub Scouts and later progressed to the Boy Scouts. He kept himself busy in the summer by attending and directing youth church camps at Sanford Campground operated by the Community of Christ.

After high school, he married the one and only love of his life, Carole Suzan Sherman. They were married on July 24, 1958 and spent the next 63 plus years loving and supporting each other as well as their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren. Through it all their faith in God helped them to celebrate the good times as well as work through difficult times.

Ken started working at the Lansing Board of Water and Light in 1958 and retired in the year 2000 with 41years of service. He started out digging ditches, moved on to street lighting, truck driving r and thereafter, began his apprenticeship for a lineman and became a journeyman in 1963. He was passionate about line work and the safety involved. His final years at the BWL were spent as the Safety and Training Administrator. In December 2021, the BWL took the first step in setting up their future training center by naming it, “Ken Dudley Sr. Training Center.” Ken was a dedicated, hard-working employee who genuinely cared about each and every co-worker and customer.

Outside of work, Ken was a lifelong member of Community of Christ. and served as a pastor for many years. He was involved with the Lansing youth, community activities, safety programs, and church camps. He voluntarily directed the YMCA basketball program for 20 years, and was responsible for starting the Girls Basketball league there. Ken also served as a leader in the Indian Guides program. He served as the Chairperson for the Michigan Safety Conference. He directed the regional Youth Sports Festival at Alma College. Lastly, Ken served as director for Sr. High and Jr. High church camps. As a result of his many contributions, on October 26, 1996, the Michigan Region of the Community of Christ Conference awarded him the “World Community International Youth Service Award.”

Ken enjoyed sports and music. In high school he played men’s basketball, softball, and volleyball. He coached his children’s youth sports such as basketball and football, and also served as a basketball official and a softball umpire for many years. In addition to his love of sports, Ken had a great appreciation of music. He sang in the church choir and later, became a member of the Men of Orpheus Choir where he sang for more than 20 years.

Ken was an amazing husband, father, grandfather, great grandfather, and friend. The old adage, “To know him is to love him” describes his relationships. He put people at ease with his kind smile and warm laugh. Ken’s faith in God was strong. He helped his family, friends, community and church. Ken will be greatly missed, and will always be loved by his family and friends. God has gained an incredible soul.

Ken is survived by his wife, Carole; four children, Ken ll (Shari) Dudley, Diana (Brian) Easter, Jay (Patti) Dudley and Lisa Baker; grandchildren, Elysse (Adam) Christenson, Bruce Dudley, Laura Dudley (Nathan Mehmed), Nicole (Rex) England, Chelsea (Kyle) Haggard, Jessica (Tony) Tipken, Shane Easter, Jay P (Krista) Dudley, Ben (Danielle) Dudley, Mark Dudley, Grant Higdon, Korie (CJ) Neshkiwe, Amber (Doug) Weadle, Lissa (Terrence) Shiels, Macy Baker; his great grandchildren; Aubrey, Logan and Olivia Christenson, Adyson and Alexis England, Rose and Lewis Haggard, Sawyer and Grayson Dudley, Jeffrey and Kaya Neshkiwe, Kaisen Shiels, Madison, Arianne, and; Jaxson Tipken; and many nieces and nephews; Kitties; Peter and Piper. He was preceded in death by his grandson, Jacob Harkness, his sister Mary Lou and brother-in-law, John Premoe, sister, Beverly Tabor and his parents Clarence and Alice Dudley.

“Trust steadily in God, hope unswervingly, love extravagantly. And the best of the three is love.

I Corinthians 13:13 (The Message)

A funeral service for Kenneth will be held Tuesday, July 12, 2022 at 12:00pm at Gorsline Runciman Funeral Homes, 900 East Michigan Ave, Lansing. The committal service will follow at Deepdale Memorial Gardens. Visitation will be held at the funeral home on Monday from 4:00-7:00pm and Tuesday from 11:00am until the time of service.

Memorial Contributions in Ken’s name may be given to:

Community of Christ, 1514 W. Miller Rd., Lansing, MI 48911

National Kidney Foundation of Michigan, 1169 Oak Valley Dr., Ann Arbor, MI 48108

Capital Area Humane Society, 5095 W. Grand River Ave., Lansing, MI 48906

Men of Orpheus, c/o Howard Heideman3653 Kiskadee Ln, East Lansing, MI 48823