Loyal "Wally" King

Loyal W. "Wally" King, 84, Bismarck, passed away on January 30, 2008. Services will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Friday, March 21, at the First Presbyterian Church in Mandan with Reverend Deanna Reikow officiating. Interment with military honors will be at 2:00 p.m. at the North Dakota Veterans Cemetery, Mandan. There will be no visitation, as cremation has taken place. Wally was born on December 30, 1923, at his parent's farm in Schaller, Iowa, the son of Loyal Rex and Sadie Ferguson King. The family moved to Colorado in 1930, and bought a small farm in Boulder in 1935 where Loyal Rex raised cattle, had a small dairy operation, and eventually formed King Construction Company. Wally graduated from Boulder High School in June of 1941, after having spent summers doing carpenter work for his Dad. He was admitted to the Engineering School at the University of Colorado in Boulder, where he majored in Mechanical Engineering. When the war began, Wally intended to enlist in the Army Air Corps, but Uncle Sam changed his plans and he was drafted in the spring of 1943. Eventually assigned to the 44th Infantry Division, he landed in Cherbourg, France, on September 15, 1944. He was promoted to staff sergeant, saw combat in Germany, France, and Austria and was awarded the Bronze Star. After the war, he returned to college and graduated in 1947. In 1950 he met Colorado University student Pat Bloeser, and they were married in June of 1951, a marriage that lasted more than 56 years. Throughout their lives together, Wally and Pat remained active in the Presbyterian Church. They became instant parents when, in 1954, Wally's sister, Marjorie, and her husband, Captain George Keller, were killed in a car/truck accident in Superior, Montana. Their three children survived and were taken in and raised by Wally and Pat as their own. In 1954, the family moved to Southern California where Wally began a long and esteemed career with Lockheed Aircraft, and where they added three more children of their own. After returning to college to complete a master's degree, Wally's career with Lockheed led him to work with missiles, spacecraft and military and passenger aircraft, and involved approximately 1.2 million miles of foreign travel. Through all these years, Wally's love of construction was seen in the building and remodeling of the family's homes and cabins, where all the children learned to hammer a nail and cut a board. Retirement took Wally and Pat to Arizona, Colorado, and eventually North Dakota. Wally is survived by his wife, Pat, Bismarck; his children, Dean Judy Keller, Albuquerque, NM, Terry Debbie Keller, Tempe, AZ, Susan Roy Burcham, Fountain Hills, AZ, Paul Sue King, Bismarck, ND, Rob Jamie King, Northridge, CA, and Rich Celeste King, Fredericksburg, VA; his grandchildren, Kyle Burcham, Jill Burcham, Amber Trey Iannella, Chris Keller, Ryan King, Jessica King, and Ashton King; his great-grandchild, Hannah Faith Phillipi; and his brother, Don Ellie King, Boulder, CO, and their children and families. A truly great family man, he will be missed by all. Memorials may be sent to the Alzheimer's Association, 225 N. Michigan Avenue, Floor 17, Chicago, IL 60601-7633 or the First Presbyterian Church of Mandan.

Loyal "Wally" King

December 30, 1923 - January 30, 2008