Kenneth L. Wellendorf 1943-2025

Kenneth was born Jan. 25, 1943, in Salem, to Faye Albertis Wellendorf and Virginia Louise Perkins Wellendorf. He graduated from Greenford High School (now South Range High School) in 1961. While in high school, he was active in sports, lettering in football, track and baseball. He was twice selected to the Intercounty All-Star football team and twice competed in the state track and field championships; he was also a member of the South Range High School football Hall of Fame.

In 1962, he joined the Ohio State Highway Patrol as a cadet dispatcher and was assigned to the Lisbon Post in Columbiana County. He entered the Highway Patrol Training Academy in Columbus in 1964 and graduated as a trooper that same year. He spent the first 10 years of his law enforcement career at the Castella Post on the Ohio Turnpike. During that time, he was selected “Post and District Trooper of the Year” in both 1971 and 1973. He was also a Field Training Officer and District Firearms Instructor.

In 1974, Ken was promoted to sergeant and assigned to the Canfield Post as Assistant Post Commander. In 1980, he was promoted to the rank of Lieutenant and assigned to the Mount Vernon Post as Post Commander. In 1984, the Mount Vernon Post was relocated to Mount Gilead in Morrow County and he assumed command of that facility.

In 1993, he was promoted to the rank of Staff Lieutenant and assigned to the Bucyrus District Headquarters as Deputy District Commander; the position Ken retired from in March of 1997 after a career of nearly 35 years with the Ohio State Highway Patrol. He loved being a part of the Ohio State Highway Patrol and always said, “I never felt like I worked a day in my life. When you love to do something it doesn’t feel like work.”

Ken was an avid sportsman and history buff. He traveled and hunted extensively, visiting all 50 states as well as Mexico and Canada, including the Yukon Territory. He was also a licensed airplane pilot and scuba diver.

But it was his role as a father and grandfather that Ken cherished above all. The annual trips to the family’s cabin in Canada, camping, fishing, bike riding and mountain climbing, are the backdrop for many of his family’s most treasured memories.

His presence was constant for his children and grandchildren. He was the kind of dad you could call at 3 a.m. and know he would always pick up the phone. His greatest loves, and our greatest loss, is his family.

He leaves behind his wife of 45 years, Martha Hitchings Wellendorf; two daughters, Kimberly June (James N. June II) of Grove City and Marianne Wellendorf Matthes of Gahanna; and five grandchildren, Jamie, Jason, Megan, Mallory and Daphne. He is also survived by his sister, Barbara McPeak; and brother, Ted Wellendorf.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Faye and Virginia Wellendorf; brothers, Donald and Larry Wellendorf; and granddaughter, Elizabeth Luke Matthes.

Ken leaves behind a legacy of service to others and a deep love for family.

A service to honor Ken’s life will be 4 p.m. Friday, July 18, 2025, at Wappner Funeral Directors and Crematory-Ontario, 100 S. Lexington-Springmill Road. A gathering of his family and friends will begin at 2 p.m.

In a fitting tribute to a man who fiercely loved his family, he asked that in lieu of flowers, donations be made to Elizabeth’s Book Drive. The family wishes to extend their heartfelt thanks for the outpouring of love and support during this time.

Kenneth L. Wellendorf was a man of integrity, a beacon of love for his family and a steward of the community. His legacy will continue to inspire, and his memory will forever be etched in the hearts of those who knew and loved him.

Words of condolence may be expressed at www.wappner.com.

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