Obituary of William Boies McKenna

Always blazing his own trail and breaking Gregorian calendar rules, William “Bill” McKenna was born on December 59th, 1948. After graduating from Foster High School, Bill enrolled in the police academy, and spent the next 40 years serving his community and the City of Seattle as a police officer, and as a civilian IT contractor for the Seattle Police Department. Once he was done ridding the city of crime and computer viruses, he retired from public service in 2005. Bill had an insatiable desire to solve problems, both trivial and universal, and it was only matched by his desire for chocolate ice cream covered in Girl Scout Thin Mint cookies and chocolate syrup. He was known by many as a craftsman, carpenter, inventor, teacher, poet, and genius. He was able to cultivate these interests after his retirement by working on carpentry projects for friends and family. Whether it was building tree houses, corn hole boards, or a handy bottle opener on the golf course, Bill loved helping those in need. He found ways to help everyone he came across (including strangers), and shrugged off offers of compensation, accolades or recognition – he just felt it was the right thing to do. Aside from philanthropy, Bill was an avid sports fan and golfer, an armchair anthropologist, and had an endless fascination with space and the origins of the universe. While not an extensive traveler, he was finally able to journey to his ancestral homeland of Ireland in 2006 with his family, which was a lifelong dream of his. Watching his beloved Seahawks win the Super Bowl was a close second. Bill’s departure from the world has rocked those of us that knew and loved him, but will also be noticed by those who probably didn’t even know his name: the espresso stand girls he would chat with when he grabbed his daily mocha; the veteran he took a new American flag to when the one on his trailer was ratty and worn; the guy searching the aisles of Home Depot looking for some random widget the employees never even knew existed; or the down-on-his-luck guy that lives next to the highway that he would anonymously mail a $20 bill to every month. Bill is survived by his wife of almost 30 years, Jennifer; daughter Kim (Kevin), daughter Jodi (Jimmy), son Erik (Annavel), daughter Janna (Luke), and daughter Lindan; and six grandchildren – Casey, Emma, Olivia, Shaelyn, Edith, and Isabel. He is also survived by his brother Jim (Donna), sister Marcia (Alan), and brother Dan. And while he’s not officially part of the actual family tree, Bill had a long time friend, Eric Griswold, who was with him during his final days. He is preceded in death by his parents James and Billie, and sister Michele. In lieu of flowers or gifts, the family requests donations be made in Bill’s name to either the American Heart Association or the American Cancer Society. Celebration of Life will be held at the Kells Irish Pub on Saturday, October 25, 2014 at 1:30pm.