Kenneth W Girard

Kenneth is predeceased by his loving wife of nearly 70 years, Leona Gail Girard; his parents, Leonel and Blanche Girard; and two brothers, Leonel

"Russ" Girard and Valmore Girard.

Kenneth is survived by his son and daughter-in-law, Eric and Adrienne Girard of West New York, N.J.; his daughter and son-in-law, Jill and

James C. Robinson of Cocoa; a sister, Shirley Wheaton of Vero Beach; and a half-brother, Doug Girard. He leaves seven grandchildren, Joy Schaller of Thornton, Colo.; Jay Robinson of Cocoa; Jaime Gray of Visalia, Calif.; and Jake, Brooke, Jordan and Alexa Girard, all of Washington

Township, N.J. Also surviving are six great-grandchildren and several nieces and nephews. Additionally, Kenneth leaves his Siamese cats,

Ginger and Pepper, which he and his wife loved for over 10 years.

Kenneth was born in Gloversville, N.Y. He served in the U.S. Army in Panama during World War II. He then lived with his family in Mayfield,

N.Y., working as a glove cutter, a carpet weaver and an inspector for General Electric in Schenectady, N.Y., before moving to Cocoa to pursue

a career as a quality control inspector for Martin Marietta at Cape Canaveral. He was instrumental in launching astronauts into space on the

Gemini program and received a salutation for his work on the Viking program, whose probes soft-landed on Mars.

In earlier years, Kenneth was an avid outdoorsman who loved to fish for trout in the mountain streams of upstate New York and snow-ski the

slopes in that region. Since being widowed in 2011, he discovered a passion for wildlife photography and could be found with fellow birders

at the Viera wetlands nearly every day seeking out flora and fauna, including birds, reptiles and insects. He particularly enjoyed spotting

and photographing species that aren't considered part of the everyday Florida landscape. He shared many of his pictures on Facebook.

Funeral services will be held Sunday at Florida Memorial Gardens, 5950 South U.S. Hwy. 1, Rockledge, 32955, where he will be laid to rest

alongside the love of his life, his wife, Leona. There will be a viewing from 2-3 p.m. in the Estuary Room of the Life Event Center, followed by a

graveside service at Florida Memorial Gardens. A light lunch and refreshments will be served afterward in the Estuary Room.

The family asks in lieu of flowers, memorials may be made in Kenneth's name to the Ritch Grissom Memorial Wetlands, c/o http://www.brevardcounty.us/NaturalResources/EnvironmentalResources/VieraWetlands.