On Jan. 29, 2011, Norman Oliver Kinyon of Greenbank, Whidbey Island, left this world from Coupeville to journey to his final home port in heaven. He is survived by his greatly beloved wife of nearly 70 years, Betty Kinyon; a son, Kenneth Kinyon of Longmont, Colo.; daughters Lorna Smith of Atenas, Costa Rica and Eileen Loerch of Boise, Idaho; a son, William Kinyon of Chewelah, Wash.; a nephew, Dale Kinyon of Coos Bay, Ore.; a niece, Joy Potts of Anchorage, Alaska; a nephew, Dennis Link of Vallejo, Calif.; 10 grandchildren and eight great grandchildren. He was preceded in death by his parents, David and Nora Kinyon, his brother, Mars Kinyon and his niece Norma Chesnut.
Norman was born in Willets, Calif., on Dec. 5, 1919, but spent all of his growing up years living in lighthouses where his father was lighthouse keeper at Tree Point and Mary Island in Alaska, New Dungeness in Washington and Umpqua River in Oregon. He graduated from Reedsport High School in 1937 after which he received his degree in engineering from the University of Washington, leaving there to work full time building military aircraft at Boeing due to the attack on Peal Harbor in 1941.
During the later years of his career at Boeing, he designed rockets as an aerospace engineer. His work called him to travel widely throughout Europe, Asia and the United States until his retirement in 1979. His projects included the B-17, B-29 and B-52 bombers, the 314, the C-97/ 377 and the Bomark. Norman married Betty Falconer on May 29, 1941, and lived in Seattle, Alki Point, and Normandy Park until retiring to Greenbank in 1979.
Norman was an avid fisherman, hunter, rockhound, mushroom hunter, navigator and naturalist, but his deepest enjoyment was found with a boat’s wheel or a pair of oars in his hands. He owned a series of cabin cruisers named for sea birds, the last being the Petrel which he remodeled from an old wooden fishing trawler. Norman and Betty traveled in their retirement to Hawaii, Mexico, Fiji, Samoa and Australia and enjoyed sharing their Whidbey Island home with friends and family, who have treasured memories of the lakes, beaches and woods of the island.
Norman’s love of nature lives on in his descendants, three of whom are biologists and his grandson Kevin, who is a ship captain. He inspired all of his children and grandchildren to earn college degrees. He was best known as a great story teller who regaled his guests with exciting tales of his lighthouse years and travels abroad. He is dearly loved and respected and, though he will be greatly missed, his legacy and his stories will live on through the lives of his many descendants.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, Feb. 5, at 2 p.m. at Whidbey Evangelical Free Church, Greenbank. Memorials are suggested to the Mukilteo Historical Society, 304 Lincoln Ave., Suite 101, Mukilteo, WA 98275, for the preservation of the Mukilteo Lighthouse, in memory of Norman Oliver Kinyon. Reflections and expressions of condolence may be posted at www.whidbeymemorial.com.
