Submitted by his wife

Ken Jutte was a wonderful man who lived life to the fullest. He wanted to do it all and always gave 100%. Nothing was half done. Ken was dedicated to myself‚ Marty‚ and his three children: Kyle 18‚ Kari 17‚ and Corey 13.

Ken‚ age 44‚ was a member of the New Bremen Volunteer Fire Department for 19 years. He died October 1‚ 2003‚ responding to a call for mutual aid by the neighboring town of New Knoxville to fight a silo fire at the Hoge Lumber Company. Three men‚ one being Ken‚ were on top of the silo when it exploded and all three men were thrown to the ground. Ken died instantly‚ one died at the hospital and the other survived‚ having landed in a trash dumpster. Our town and surrounding towns were devastated.

Ken was a dedicated firefighter‚ and an energetic‚ knowledgeable leader who served as an officer for 5 years. Ken was also involved with the Rope Rescue Team and Hazmat Team‚ and served for 1 _ years on the Rescue Squad because there were not enough volunteers. Ken always enjoyed serving the public. He volunteered at Holy Redeemer Church as a Eucharistic minister and was on the church council.

Ken loved being involved with the kids. At the yearly fireman’s picnic he enjoyed taking charge of the kids’ water-ball tournament. He also coached kids’ soccer‚ girls’ softball‚ and boys’ baseball teams for many years. If he wasn’t coaching he would be volunteering. Ken could never just sit idle‚ he always wanted to be involved.

Ken never ran out of energy (just like his youngest son‚ Corey). He could function on five hours of sleep‚ getting up at 5:00 each and every morning to go to the YMCA to run for an hour‚ exercise for an hour‚ and then off to work he would go. He would greet everyone with a smile and a ‘hello.’ Ken was always a very positive person with more energy than anyone I have ever known.

Ken was such a proud father‚ always having stories to tell of our kids’ accomplishments or the goofy things they may have done or tried to do. I can’t tell you how deeply Ken‚ husband‚ father‚ son‚ brother and uncle is missed‚ but I plan to do all the right things so I can be with him again someday. It gives me comfort to know Ken is very happy in heaven with our oldest son Brent who died when he was 8 days old. I feel certain the two of them are watching over us.

Thank you for allowing me to share my story with you about my husband who will forever be remembered by so many.