Kenneth A Shaw

Colonel Kenneth (Ken) Alden Shaw (Ret.) passed away on October 19, 2014 following a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He was 80 years old. Ken is survived by his wife Gayle Twigger-Shaw; his sisters Katherine Bowns of Tampa, FL and Nancy Burns of Ashville, NC; his children, daughters Janie Frist (Moe) of Morgantown, WV, Juli Seaman (Steve) of Leesburg, VA and Carolyn Yost (Brian) of Clarksburg, WV; sons Jim Spano (Beverly) of Ravenswood, WV, Joe Spano (Donna) of Charleston, WV, and Mike Twigger of Charleston, WV. Ken had six grandchildren: Joseph Spano, Jr., Samantha Spano, Jessica Spano, Ian Frist, Jillian Frist, and Hunter Yost. Ken was a native of Charleston, West Virginia and he graduated from Stonewall Jackson high school. He earned a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering from Kansas State University in 1957. Following graduating from Kansas State, he moved to Ravenswood, W V and was employed by Kaiser Aluminum as a chemical engineer. Ken worked for Kaiser for 28 years including his role as Carbon Plant Superintendent with his final post as Environmental Services Superintendent. In this role, he managed the air, water, solid, and hazardous waste environmental systems and procedures at the aluminum plant. Ken also served as Carbon Plant Superintendent for the Kaiser Aluminum Smelter in Ghana, Africa in 1976. Ken had a long and distinguished military career in the West Virginia Army National Guard. He served in various line, staff, and command positons with the Engineer Units of the State, which includes Battalion Commander of the 1092nd Engineer Battalion. He further served as the Operations Officer and Commander of the 111th Engineer Group. In 1963 he completed flight training thereby becoming a fixed wing, rotary wing, and instrument qualified pilot. He served on continuous flight status until 1980 and was awarded the Master Aviator badge. Colonel Shaw’s military training included thirty-four specialty schools including the Industrial College of the Armed Forces, at Fort McNair in Washington DC and the US Army Command and General Staff College. Colonel Shaw was placed on Active Duty in 1986 and appointed the United States Property and Fiscal Officer for West Virginia in Buckhannon, WV. Ken was an active member of the community and held positions on many organizations in Jackson County as well as national organizations such as Rotary International, Toastmasters International, and Alpha Tau Omega fraternity. Ken was a long-time member of Our Savior Lutheran Church in Ravenswood, WV. Funeral home visitation will be held at Wilson Funeral Home 420 Lee Street, West, Charleston, WV on Wednesday, October 22, 2014 from 3:00-5:00 PM. The family wishes that donations to the following organizations be given in lieu of flowers: National Parkinson Foundation, Hubbard Hospice House, and The Michael J. Fox Foundation, http://www.parkinson.org, http://www.hospicecarewv.org, https://www.michaeljfox.org/ The online guestbook may be accessed at www.wilsonfuneralandcremation.com Wilson Funeral Home, Charleston is serving the Shaw family.