Kenneth Dallas Riley

Kenneth Dallas Riley, was born in Springfield, Ohio on November 6, 1941. After a courageous battle with Pancreatic Cancer, he passed peacefully at home, on December 6, 2024 surrounded by his loved ones. He graduated from Greenon High School in 1959 and attended Ohio State University. He moved to Waldport, Oregon to work for a logging company, and later started working in Commercial Fishing including 5 seasons of King Crab out of Dutch Harbor and Kodiak, Alaska, on the storied “King & Winge” ship. One of the highlights of his life, he often reminisced about his days at sea. Back on dry land, he had a long career in Residential Real Estate spanning from the 1960s to the 2020s. He had a passion for community service. He coached and lead youth sports, Boy Scouts, or 4-H when his kids were young. You could always find him volunteering to help with charitable fundraisers, like gathering auction items or selling tulips. In retirement, he enjoyed participating in community organizations like Toastmasters, Rotary, the Aurora Colony Historical Museum and was given an award for his years of service to Easter Seals. It was impossible to not like being around Ken. He was the kindest soul, always looking for ways he could help those around him. Nothing was more important to him than showing up for his friends and family. If you needed help, Ken would be the first person to show up - he’d drop everything and run right over to assist. He made every day fun. He liked to concoct friendly pranks, and tell jokes whenever he could fit one in. His sense of humor was contagious and if he was laughing, soon everyone was laughing with him - lifting the spirits of all nearby. One of his favorite pastimes was playing games with his kids and grandkids. Taught to play cards from his Grandma Foland. You’d often find him cheating or teaching a grandchild how to cheat at Euchre or Tens with a mischievous smile on his face. Ken had an unmatched love for life. He and Cindy were able to travel the world together but just as easily found adventure near home. He loved to laugh, watch Ohio State and Seattle Seahawks games, and was always on the hunt for a unique recipe or activity. He enjoyed discovering things that were just a little different than the norm and sharing them with the people he loved. He loved his family most of all, and you couldn’t wipe the smile off his face when they were all together. He was preceded in death by his father, Kenneth Riley, mother, Thelma Riley, and his great-grandson Kendrick Martin. He is survived by his wife of 52 years, Cindy Riley, children Ken (Yoli) Riley of Newport, Oregon, Mari (Dave) Latimer, of Eugene, Oregon, Kyle (Jenny) Riley of Seattle, Washington, and Sarah (Chris Calkins) Spoon of Wilsonville, Oregon, and his grandchildren Cody Riley, Jacob Riley, Brynn Spoon, and Ezra Spoon, and his siblings Connie Jones and Danita Ferryman of Springfield, Ohio, and Doug Riley of Denver Colorado. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to The Pancreatic Cancer Action Network at www.pancan.org or Brief Encounters at www.briefencounters.org. A small, private, celebration of life will be held at a later date.

Kenneth Dallas Riley

November 6, 1941 - December 6, 2024