Obituary of Kenneth R. Jensen

Kenneth R. Jensen Kenneth R. Jensen, 90, a resident at The Fairfax, Fort Belvoir, VA, passed away on July 27, 2011. His wife of 49 years, Cathy, predeceased him in January 2006. He is survived by his sons, William D. Jensen of Knoxville, TN and Dr. Charles D. Jensen, of McLean, VA. He is also survived by his granddaughter, Rebecca Jensen-Uesugi and her husband Keiji of Los Angeles, CA, his sister Evelyn Dalebout and her husband Richard of Provo, UT, his sister-in-law, Bertie Cowley of Salinas, CA, as well as by many nieces, nephews and friends. He is also predeceased by his brothers Eugene Cowley and Robert Jensen. Kenneth was born in Salt Lake City, Utah on July 1, 1921. He graduated from South High in 1938 and volunteered for the Navy in October 1940. After basic training in San Diego, Ken was assigned to the heavy cruiser, USS Salt Lake City. He volunteered for duty with the Asiatic Fleet and was stationed in the Philippines by July 1941 and was serving aboard the USS Canopus at the start of World War II. He escaped from the Philippines as a replacement crew member aboard the submarine USS Pickerel one day before the Japanese took over Manila, Cavite Naval Yard and subsequently, Bataan. He once said that after the war he tried to locate his friends who got left behind on Bataan and Corregidor, but that not one of them ever made it back home from the war. The Pickerel had a successful war patrol and participated in the Naval Battle of Balikpapan in the Makassar Strait in January 1942. Ken was transferred to the submarine base at Surabaya, Java in early February, 1942. He departed Java aboard the USS Holland just a few days before the Japanese took over that portion of the Dutch East Indies. Ken was then assigned to the submarine base at Fremantle, Australia as a replacement crew member for the submarine USS Sargo, and later served aboard the USS Otus while in New Guinea. He was rotated back to the United States late in the war for the refit of the USS Cecil. After the war, he was in the naval reserves and was called back to active duty during the Korean War. In 1952, he was reassigned to the Air Force, and over the next 12 years served at numerous locations including Japan and the Air Force Academy. He retired from the Air Force in 1964. Ken was assigned to the Military Sealift Command during the Vietnam War and was stationed in Japan from 1968 to 1971. Ken had 33 years of military and Federal service and his last assignment was at the Pentagon. He retired from government service in 1977, and then worked in the private sector until 1987, when he retired from his personnel position in the mortgage industry. Among his military decorations are the Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V”, Submarine Combat Patrol Insignia, Army Distinguished Unit Badge, Navy Combat Action Ribbon (awarded by the Secretary of the Navy in 2009), Asiatic-Pacific Campaign Medal with four bronze service stars and the Philippine Presidential Unit Citation. He is an alumnus of Upper Iowa University. Visitation will be held on Thursday, August 4, 2011, from 7 PM- 9 PM at The Advent Funeral Home, 7211 Lee Highway, Falls Church, VA 22046 (703-241-7402). Interment with military honors at Arlington National Cemetery. Contact Charles D. Jensen at (703) 893-5677 or by e-mail at [email protected] for additional information. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in the name of Kenneth R. Jensen to the charity of your choice.