Daniel Conrad Ketchum

Daniel Conrad Ketchum

Dan was 84 when he died on January 23, 2022 in Tulsa, OK with his children by his side. Dan was born in Glasgow, MT, on August 29, 1937. His family moved to Fort Worth, TX in the early 1940s before settling in Oklahoma City, OK in 1952. He graduated from Classen High School in OKC in 1955. Dan graduated from Oklahoma State University with a B.S. in Forestry in 1960. He was a member of Sigma Alpha Epsilon fraternity. After college, Dan joined the Navy and attended Officer Candidate School in Annapolis, MD. A few years after active duty on a ship, he met Jane Riddick Perry in Virginia Beach. They married in 1963, and Dan worked as a Forester in North Carolina. He earned the degree of Master of Forestry at North Carolina State University in 1967. Dan remained in the Naval Reserve for the next 30+ years and ascended to Captain in Alaska. Dan and Jane had 4 children while in the Carolinas before moving to Stillwater, Oklahoma in 1971. Dan worked as an instructor in the Oklahoma State University Forestry Department from 71-79. In 1979 Dan moved to Alaska and found his place. He worked as a Forester at Ft. Richardson and the Alaska State DNR for the next 3 decades. Dan became one of the first Certified Arborists in Alaska and was involved with urban forests in the Municipality of Anchorage. Dan also attended San Francisco Theological Seminary in San Anselmo, CA, and graduated in 1990 with a Master of Divinity. He was very proud to be a Presbyterian minister and was a member of Immanuel Presbyterian Church in Anchorage. Dans ministry took him to many Alaskan cities and villages including Barrow, Nome, Savoonga, Juneau, Anchorage and Wasilla as well as Clallum Bay, WA. Dan was an avid outdoorsman and conservationist. He loved hiking, camping, hunting, fishing, and running his river boat on all the area streams and rivers. He retired from working for the State of Alaska in 2005.

Dan was a very proud father of 4 to John (Julie) Ketchum of Anchorage, AK, Matt (Tammy) Ketchum of Wasilla, AK, Daniel (Melanie) Ketchum of Tulsa, OK, Paula (Mark) Bearden of Tulsa, OK, and 11 grandchildren. He would tell you Be safe, be well and be happy. There will be a service for Dan at Immanuel Presbyterian Church this summer. In lieu of flowers, Dan would love for you to plant your favorite tree in his honor.