July 12, 1925 - August 25, 2014
J. Kenneth Trautmann, age 89 of Rayville, MO, died on August 25, 2014. Born July 12, 1925 in New Richmond, WI. He worked at Amoco Oil Co. for 35 years in Minneapolis, Salt Lake City and Kansas City until retiring in 1986. Preceded in death by his wife, Charlotte; infant son, Kyle; his parents, Edwin and Carol; and three brothers, Warren, Jim and Fred. Survived by children, Dawn (Wendell) Robson of Kingsville, MO, Joy (Tim) Tipton of Lawson, MO, John (Marian) of Brooklyn Center, MN and Lyle (Laura) of Seymour, WI; 10 grandchildren and a great-grandchild; siblings, Norman (Audrey) of Bella Vista, AK, Bill (Cleo) of Eau Claire, WI, Dr. Floyd (Donna) of Eau Claire, WI, Carolyn (Ken) Wilkins of Rockford, IL, and a sister-in-law, Marge Trautmann of Hastings, MN,
In lieu of flowers, memorials may be directed to the Alzheimer's Association.
I would like to extend my sincere condolences to the family and friends of John Trautmann. In times like this, filled with so much grief and sadness, the Bible offers us comfort and hope. We have this assurance in Revelation 21:4–God “will wipe every tear from their eyes, and death will be no more, neither will mourning nor outcry nor pain be anymore. The former things have passed away.” Just imagine what joy we will feel when we greet our loved ones again.
My uncle Ken was an honorable man and my only wish would be that we could have spent more time together while here on Earth. My Mom, Louise (Knoke) Swenson was Charlotte’s older sister, and unfortunately Ken and Charlotte moved away to Missouri to raise their family when I was still young. We did visit them a couple of times, and I will never forget being at their home and going out to “fix” the pigs! I’m sure they had a good laugh at me, a “city boy” considering my Dad was a farm boy as well. Ken’s latter years were harder ones, but faith and hope were always there to push forward. Now that his race is finished, Ken has certainly heard the words…”Well done”. May we all live lives that would honor our Lord Jesus in service to others. Let’s all remember the words of Moses, “Lord teach us to number our days, that we may gain a heart of wisdom”. May God comfort all who knew and loved Ken during his time with us.