Kenneth David Van Dyke

November 1st, 1925 – July 2nd, 2026

Born in Danville, Illinois on November 1st, 1925, Ken was the first child of Ross F. and Edna G. Van Dyke. During his childhood, his family’s move from Danville to Jamaica, Illinois, reflected the hardships of the Great Depression. Ken attended country school through the third grade and later completed his education in the Danville area, graduating from Danville High School.

In November 1943, he joined the U.S. Army Air Corps as an Aviation Cadet and entered training at Fort Sheridan, Illinois, followed by assignments in Florida and Mississippi. After additional training in Texas, he later continued training as a flight engineer on the B-29 bomber. With the war’s end, he was honorably discharged in October 1945. His lifelong love of aviation was a constant throughout his life—he earned a pilot’s license and accumulated more than 500 hours of flight time.

After returning to civilian life, Ken worked in a variety of roles, including positions in retail management, aircraft service, payroll and purchasing, and air traffic control. In 1951, he met Nola Davidson on a blind date, and they married in February 1952. They made their home in Indianapolis and later moved to Oklahoma City in August 1959, where Ken spent decades in the telecommunications industry, notably with Western Electric and AT&T, retiring in 1987 after 30 years of service.

Ken was deeply involved in his church, serving St. James Episcopal Church on the Vestry and as a past Director of the Brotherhood of St. Andrew. He was also a member of the Telephone Pioneers. In retirement, he enjoyed travel, photography (especially weddings), computer classes, and careful dabbling in the stock market.

He was preceded in death by his mother and father, Ross and Edna Van Dyke, and by his wife of 70 years, Nola Van Dyke.

He is survived by his daughter Sandra Foste and her husband Ralph; his son Greg and wife Brenda; grandchildren Weston Kennedy and Zachary Van Dyke; step-grandchildren Matthew Foste, Megan Beene, and Bridget Monholland; great-grandchildren Ledger Van Dyke, Morgan Van Dyke, Molly Monholland, Emerson Monholland, Cooper Beene, Grayson Beene, and Blakely Beene; and his sister Phyllis Robinson of Plain City, Ohio.

Services will be held on Monday, July 13th at 11:00 AM at Vondel L. Smith & Son Mortuary at South Lakes—4000 SW 119th Street, Oklahoma City, OK 73173. Burial will be at Resthaven Cemetery.