Great Falls —Kenneth A. McDermott, 79, of Great Falls and formerly of Fairfield passed away October 9, 2015 from complications of Acute Myeloid Leukemia (AML) at Benefis Hospital in Great Falls.

Memorial services are Thursday, October 15, 2015 at 2 p.m. at the Sunset Cemetery in Fairfield. O'Connor Funeral Home is handling arrangements.

Ken was born March 3, 1936 in Sweetgrass, Montana. One of 12 children born to Peter Jr. and Ruth McDermott he grew up at West Butte in the Sweet Grass Hills. Ken graduated high school from Shelby in 1955. During high school, he joined the Marine Reserve unit in Shelby, until being honorably discharged in 1956. In 1956, Ken joined the US Army as a radio and communication technician serving in Japan and Korea and he was honorably discharged from the Army in 1958.

After returning to Shelby, Ken married Ellen L. Sigurdson on March 11, 1960 in Great Falls. Ken and Ellen lived in Shelby and started raising a family. Ken worked at Mountain Bell in Shelby as a telephone lineman and office technician until 1968. In 1968 Ken took a job with Automatic Electric as a central office equipment installer with over sea assignments in Spain and Germany. In 1970 Ken and Ellen, with their family decided to move back to Montana where Ken found a job with 3 Rivers Telephone as a central office technician in Fairfield. Ken worked for 28 years at 3 Rivers Telephone until his retirement in 1998.

In 2014 Ken and Ellen moved from Fairfield to the Lodge, an assisted living facility in Great Falls.

Ken enjoyed trap shooting and traveling during his retirement. He was very handy and could figure out how to fix just about anything. He was always willing to help in any way that others needed. Ken also loved to spend time with his grandchildren, family, and friends. Ken was always quick on his feet with jokes and helping others with any type of telephone or electrical wiring project.

Ken was a lifetime member of VFW and member of American Legion.

Ken is survived by his wife, Ellen McDermott of Great Falls; sons Brett McDermott of Great Falls and Bryan (Carrie) McDermott of Bexley, OH; sister Beverly Nash of Cut Bank; grandchildren Grant, Olivia, & Quinn McDermott of Bexley, Ohio and many cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Ken was preceded in death by his parents, sons Darrold McDermott and Bart McDermott; five sisters and five brothers.

In lieu of flowers, memorials can be made to Wounded Warriors Projects at http://www.woundedwarriorproject.org/ or PO Box 758517, Topeka KS 66675

Condolences may be left online at OconnorFuneralHome.com

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