Obituary of Kenneth Haack

Kenneth Haack, 77, of Tulsa, OK, passed away peacefully on July 21, 2024, surrounded by family.  Ken was born on September 24, 1946, as the first of three children to Alvin and Maxine Haack in Auburn, Nebraska. He grew up on a farm, along with his sisters Jan and Barb, and helped his dad with haying and milking cows before school every morning.  Ken and his sisters had used bikes that were repainted, and he would ride his bicycle three miles to town to play baseball, then ride home at night with only the light from the stars and moon. They had neighbors with boys the same age; they would get together and play basketball in the barn's hayloft.  Ken’s Grandpa Blinde would reward Ken with a can of pop when he mowed the grass with a push reel mower and trimmed it with scissors. Manual labor was a part of his childhood.

Ken’s parents were concerned with paying for college for the three kids, so their mom decided to renew her two-year teaching certificate around the time that Ken was about thirteen years old. As she attended summer school and their dad did the farming, Ken was in charge of the kids, cooking the noon meals, and making sure they all got their chores done before their mom got home. Ken’s chicken fried steak is especially memorable to his sisters.  Maxine’s return to teaching was with Ken's eighth grade class. He was smart and excelled in school.  One day, the mother of another student came to the house and complained about favoritism. This was most likely not true, but a challenge for Maxine, and probably not easy for Ken either. It was always questioned if his D in citizenship later that year was somehow a result of that incident.

Ken was in 4-H and showed a calf at the county fair. He was also in Boy Scouts.  In high school, he participated in basketball, football, track, and band. He once took a career aptitude test, where he was informed that he could do any job except repair watches because his hands were too big. Ken was a well-rounded student whose skills ranged from sports to cooking.  When Ken graduated as valedictorian from Johnson High School in 1964, he went on to study Civil Engineering at the University of Nebraska. It was there that he met Connie Zink, another student at the University of Nebraska. While in college, Ken worked for the ASCS office measuring cropland and bushels of grain in farm storage bins. He also went to California and worked for the Department of Roads in the summer.

After graduating with a degree in Engineering, Ken started his first post-college job at Texaco in Wichita, Kansas as a petroleum engineer, kickstarting a fifty-five year career in the petroleum industry.  In 1969, he and Connie were married. During their twenty-six year marriage, Ken and Connie went on to raise four wonderful children, Karen Maxine, Daniel Kenneth, Tonia Kathleen, and Kelly Evelyn. This was primarily in their house in south Tulsa, where he still resided until the end of his life.

After one excruciatingly hot summer, Ken decided to have a pool built for the family. Many family gatherings and birthday parties were held around that pool over the years.  At the beginning of pool season, he had an amazing ability to transform a dark green pool into a pool clean and ready for company two days later. There are many fond memories of eating Ken’s delicious smoked cheese around that pool and everyone knew you needed to get there early or it would be gone!

He was always an involved parent, sometimes coaching sports teams, and sometimes filming from the sidelines. One way or another, he was consistently present.  Ken took the family camping and on other family adventures.  Each summer and winter, Ken would drive the family to Nebraska for quality time with extended family.  Ken met Marge Dover in 1995 on a blind date set up by friends, and they ended up enjoying life together for almost three decades.  They loved the outdoors, and traveled to national parks including the Grand Canyon, Missouri, Colorado, Utah, the Florida Gulf Coast, Texas and North Carolina. Ken’s thriving professional life provided much enrichment, and there were no signs of retirement.  Besides time in his office, he liked to get out in the field, often in Osage County.  Ken always seemed amused and entertained by geology, oil tools, soil samples, and working with the guys in the field, not to mention solving big problems or killing rattlesnakes if necessary.

Ken blessed many people with his kind and generous spirit.  When his neighbor was diagnosed with cancer, Ken showed up at the door to offer his support and help.  Numerous people have reported that he helped them through difficult situations.  One friend and neighbor said, “He definitely has earned a star in heaven in my opinion.”  He was always a loyal friend who put others first. He chose to live a life of service, never complaining when others needed him.  Ken also served the community by regularly donating blood, and every Friday morning Ken and Marge served food to people in need at Iron Gate of Tulsa, developing relationships with the Iron Gate community.  He was a member of local petroleum organizations, a geology club, and an astronomy club, not to mention a proud card-carrying member of Costco. Ken enjoyed spending his time with his friends and family. Whatever his kids and grandkids had happening, he could always be counted on to be there with a smile.  Selflessness, patience, humility, good listener, giver- all of these are qualities that Ken consistently displayed.

Ken was preceded in death by his mother, Maxine Blinde Haack and his father, Alvin Haack. He is survived by his partner of nearly thirty years, Marge Dover; his children Karen and her husband Tom Decker, Dan Haack and his wife Jodee, Toni and her husband Adam Viles, and Kelly Haack and her husband Mike Morrison; his grandchildren Colton Streetman and his wife Iva and his great-granddaughter Vesa, Devon Streetman, Adrienne Streetman and her wife Kayla, Cameron Straley, Madison Decker, Grayson Decker, Carter Viles, and Anya Morrison; his sisters Jan and her husband Don Gerdes, and Barb and her husband Ken Swanson; five fantastic nephews and their families, along with numerous friends and colleagues.

Services will be held at All Souls Unitarian Church on Sunday, July 28th, 2024, at 2:00 pm. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Iron Gate Tulsa, Tulsa’s largest stand-alone soup kitchen and grocery pantry (irongatetulsa.org) and the Tulsa SPCA (tulsaspca.org), two organizations that Ken supported.   Service may be viewed online at https://allsoulschurch.org/live/ 

Ninde Brookside, 918-742-5556, www.ninde.com