Kenneth Duane Pilgrim

Kenneth Duane Pilgrim, 78, of 801 28th Ave. North, Clinton, Iowa, died at 3:30 a.m. Tuesday, September 13, 2011, at Eagle Point Nursing and Rehabilitation Center, Clinton. A Celebration of Life service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 17, 2011, at the Law – Jones Funeral Home, 1854 Illinois Route 84, Thomson, Illinois. Burial will follow at the Upper York Cemetery, Argo Fay, Illinois. Visitation will be held from 10:00 to 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, September 13, prior to the funeral at Law – Jones Funeral Home.
Kenneth was born on May 4, 1933, on a dairy farm near Edgewood, Iowa, to Merle Rawson and Orpha Leota (Miller) Pilgrim. At the age of 3, he was nearly killed in an accident which resulted in lifelong crippling injuries. He attended a one-room rural school for 8 years, and graduated from Edgewood High School in 1951.
Kenneth volunteered for the Army in 1951 and was as a trained as a Medical Corpsman. He served for 18 months at the Army’s 141st General Hospital in Japan caring for soldiers who had been wounded in Korea. He was released from active duty in 1953 with the rank of Private First Class, the Army Medical Badge, the Good Conduct Medal, the Korean Service Medal, the United Nations Service Medal, the National Defense Service Medal, and the Cold War Victory Medal.
Kenneth attended Upper Iowa University at Fayette, Iowa, for 3 1/2 years. In 1959, he became a Psychiatric Aide at the Iowa State Mental Health Institute in Independence, Iowa, where he was employed for 36 years. In 1995, Iowa’s Governor Terry Branstad honored him with a gold medal for his long dedicated service to the mentally impaired.
On October 16, 1960, Kenneth married Diana Dreier in West Union, Iowa. They adopted a boy on the day of his birth, May 28, 1967, and named him Lance Richard Pilgrim. Kenneth and Diana were divorced in 1972.
On June 21, 1975, Kenneth married Kathy Ann Schrandt in Waterville, Iowa. They became foster parents of Sagaya Mary Rajappa from India. Kathy passed away in 1988.
Kenneth was a member of Immanuel Lutheran Church in Independence, the Goose Lake Lions International, and the Korean War Veterans Association. He enjoyed writing poetry and letters, and completed several courses in theology. His hobbies were his pets, gardening, house plants, assembling models, painting, and crossword puzzles.
During the spring of 1995, Kenneth was subjected to extremely serious health problems which terminated his employment, and hospitalized him until he entered the Community Care Nursing Home near Charlotte, Iowa, on October 23rd that year. He resided there until March 2009 when he moved to Eagle Point Nursing and Rehabilitation in Clinton.
Left to honor his memory are his son, Lance (Sharon) Pilgrim of Guntersville, Alabama; his brother, Curtis (Anna) Pilgrim of Thomson, Illinois; his nephew, David (Naddene) Pilgrim of Fairbury, Illinois; his niece, Janice Winkler of Cottage Grove, Minnesota; his nephew, William (Denise) Pilgrim of Thomson; three grandnieces, two grandnephews; eleven first - cousins; and numerous friends.
Kenneth was preceded in death by his father in 1980, his stepfather in 1984, his wife in 1988, his mother in 2002, and two first – cousins in 1969 and 2009. Condolences and memorials may be made to Curtis and Anna Pilgrim, 15492 Argo Fay Route, Thomson, Illinois, 61285, to honor Kenneth’s memory.