Harry William Kendrick

Harry William Kendrick, 92, died Jan. 11, 2013, at the Alaska Veterans and Pioneers Home in Palmer.

He was born in Berwich, Penn., July 10, 1920, to Fred and Emma Kendrick. Harry served in the U.S. Navy during World War II as an airplane mechanic and traveled on an aircraft carrier to deliver fighter planes to North Africa.

After the war, Harry and wife Drusilla made an adventurous journey up the brand new Alaska Highway with Drusilla’s aunt, uncle and cousins. They settled on Bodenburg Loop in the Butte area near Palmer, where they farmed potatoes and other crops for more than 10 years. In the early 1950s, Harry worked as a miner at the Jonesville coal mine. In 2011, he was inducted into the Sutton Coal Miners’ Hall of Fame.

After the ’64 earthquake, he helped rebuild the devastated port of Valdez. Over the years, Harry also worked as a logger, sawmill operator, carpenter, contractor and heavy equipment operator. He even worked briefly on the Trans-Alaska Pipeline System.

Harry loved music, and on Sunday mornings would sometimes make breakfast while blasting favorite LPs like “Fiddler on the Roof,” “Man of La Mancha” or “Rhapsody in Blue” on the console stereo. He also instilled in his daughters his love of reading and respect for nature and animals. He loved cars and airplanes, and could spend hours perusing car lots or watching air shows. Harry often carried a camera with him and loved photographing airplanes, scenic views and family events. He was a great whistler, harmonica player and pool player. He often had a gleam in his eye and frequently was up to something or about to pull your leg. He lived life on his own terms, for better or worse.

Preceding him in death were his sisters, Katherine Shoemaker and Delphine Connors; and daughters, Susan Lynn Kendrick and Kathy Kendrick Milward.

Surviving are his wife, Drusilla; daughters, Diane Kendrick-Adey, Christine Kendrick and Lois Kendrick; grandchildren, Megan Milward, Seth France, Corey Leff, Ana Kendrick-Adey and Ian Adey; and great-grandchildren, James France, Ian Hodges Leff and Izzybella Leff.

A memorial service is being planned for sometime in February.