Kenneth (Ken) Edward Sink's Obituary
Kenneth (Ken) Edward Sink was born to Kimiko Yamamuro and Eldin LeRoy Sink at Castle Air Force base near Merced, California on March 12, 1956. He died on April 19, 2025 at age 69 from complications of a head injury sustained in a fall.
Ken’s father served in the Air Force as a ball turret gunner on B-24s during the Korean War. During Eldin’s service, the family lived for a few years in Scotland, then found a permanent home in Mountain Home, Idaho.
In his freshman year of college at Utah State University (from which he would graduate with a bachelor's degree in Journalism), Ken met Sharon Brinkerhoff. The two were soon married and had four children: Crystal (Giordano), Michael, Benjamin, and Geoffrey. Ken and Sharon later divorced, and Ken met Suzanne Smith. They were married in 1996 and had two children, Taylor and Sawyer.
Ken was fiercely patriotic. He followed his father into the Air Force and attained the rank of Major. Although Ken served in several roles, the one he loved was as a weapons controller in the Advance Warning and Control System (AWACS).
His experiences with his father and in the Air Force gave Ken a lifelong passion for aviation and all things World War II. When he left active duty, Ken parlayed his skills to become an air traffic controller at several airports, including Ogden Regional in Utah. He would later work for Utah Valley University as a recruiter for their aviation program.
With their children grown, in 2022 Ken and Suzanne left their residence in Orem, Utah to start an off-grid homestead outside Wendover, Nevada, but they soon swapped it for one that was closer to family in Sanpete County, Utah. Ken lived there until his death. Sharon predeceased him on March 9, 2025. He is survived by Suzanne and all of his children.
A celebration of life will be held on Sunday, June 1, 2025 from 4-6pm at 95 N 600 W, Orem, Utah.
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