Kenneth Mitchell "Pap" Lewis
May 19, 1922 - Nov. 20, 2007

Kenneth Mitchell "Pap" Lewis, 85, of Sterling, died Nov. 20, 2007, in Sterling.

Visitation will be from 1 to 6 p.m. Sunday, Nov. 25, at Chaney-Reager Funeral Home. Funeral service will be at 10:30 a.m. Monday, Nov. 26, at Chaney-Reager, with BPO Elks Lodge No. 1336 officiating. Burial will be at Riverside Cemetery, with military rites by American Legion Post No. 20.

Ken was born May 19, 1922, to Mitchell and Anna Josephine (Carmody) Lewis in Lawrence County, Illinois. He attended a country school through the eighth grade, and graduated from Allendale High School in Illinois in 1940. He started working in the oil field in 1940, pumping wells.

On June 20, 1942, he married Wanda Wolfe in Orio, Ill.

During World War II, Ken was drafted into the U.S, Army, 91st Infantry, and went to Camp White in Oregon for basic training. From Oregon, he was sent to Oran, Africa, and then to Italy, going into combat on July 4, 1944. He received his battlefield commission to 2nd Lt.

Ken was wounded Oct. 4, 1944, and spent five months in the hospital near Florence, Italy. When he was released from the hospital, he was assigned to quartermaster truck company, where he received promotion to 1st Lt. He was discharged at Ft. Leonard Wood, Mo., in 1946.

Ken was awarded the Purple Heart and the Silver Star.

In 1955, the most special event of his life happened, when he and Wanda adopted their daughter, Patricia Ann, when she was 3 years old. Kenneth was truly the best father and grandfather anyone could ask for.

After his discharge from the service, he had gone to work in the oil field industry, moving to Colorado in 1959 and retiring in 1986. He was a member of BPO Elks Lodge No. 1336 and Masonic Lodge No. 54 AF & AM. He enjoyed playing cards with his friends, and most of all, he loved spending time with his grandchildren and great-grandchildren.

Ken is survived by his daughter, Patricia Bone of Sterling; special friend, Rich Pomeroy of Sterling; special pet, Tanner; his sister, Eloise Hughs of Indianapolis, Ind.; sister-in-law, Norma Lewis of Allendale, Ill.; grandchildren, Michelle Schuette and husband David of Greeley, and Jim Bone and wife Michelle of Kansas City, Mo.; great-grandchildren, Sydney, Jordyn and Taryn Schuette, and Haydon, Daeton and Bradon Bone.

He was preceded in death by his wife, Wanda Lewis, and brother, Bernard Lewis.

Memorials may be made to Hospice of the Plains.