Kenneth A. Stark, age 91, of Fountain Valley, CA, passed away at Kaiser Permanente Irvine on Good Friday, April 18, 2025. He is survived by his daughters Sherie, Lynda and Tracy; his stepdaughters Glenna, Paula and Amanda; his sons-in-law; and his beloved grandchildren Maddie, Tracy, Kenny, Isaac, Peter, Josh, Ryan, Lauren, Molly and Hannah.
Ken was born September 5, 1933 in Canada, where his mother, Caroline, a young immigrant from England, was living before moving down to Los Angeles, where Ken, and his little brother Cliff, were raised. Ken was a very enterprising young boy and held a number of jobs in the city, from newspaper delivery boy to shoe shine boy to golf caddy at the local country club. His entrepreneurial drive was evident from the get go. By the time he was a teen, he was working as a pit mechanic for race car drivers, as he loved the challenge of fine tuning cars to be faster and faster for competition. He was very good at it, as he loved cars and was especially good at figuring out how things worked and making them more efficient!
After high school, he studied advanced auto mechanics at L.A. Trade Technical College, and then served in the tanks mechanics division of the Army, stationed in Texas with his young wife Dona and their first daughter, Sherie.
When they came back to Southern California after the Army, Ken and Dona moved to Lynwood, and had two more daughters, Lynda and Tracy, before moving to Anaheim.
Ken worked as a general mechanic for a couple of decades while earning his Financial Planning credentials in the 70s, beginning a 50-year career advising clients and their families on investments, real estate and estate planning, greatly improving all of their lives directly and indirectly with his guidance and mentorship. He served as president of the Financial Planning Association of Orange County in the 80s, and was also a dedicated member of Toastmasters all those years, honing his speaking and leadership skills while enriching his community.
Ken was a loving, attentive husband and father, to his first wife, Dona and their three girls, Sherie, Lynda and Tracy; and then after Dona passed away in the 90s, to his second wife Nita and her three daughters, Paula, Glenna and Amanda. He was a kind and supportive father figure to all his girls’ husbands and to all his grandchildren, who adored him.
Ken especially loved spending time with the next generation, teaching them how to fix things, play poker, and fish, and especially, how to enjoy life in the company of loved ones. As they became adults, he maintained deep connections to them all, and was a steady source of love and guidance to them. He was known for his twinkly eyed smile and his deep hugs, and he made lifelong friends of neighbors, clients, colleagues, and all those he came into contact with, in all walks of life!
Throughout his life, Ken knew that every moment, every year, every turn and bend life brings us should be embraced with enthusiasm and gratitude, and he fully embodied that idea. He was an inspiration to all those who knew him, and he will continue to affect them with his loving spirit. His was a great example of a life well lived; he was a truly great man who lived along and very happy life! He will be remembered with much love and admiration as a devoted father, grandfather, friend and colleague.
Ken’s funeral service will be at 9 a.m., at Christ Cathedral, 12141 S. Lewis St., Garden Grove, CA 92840, and all are welcome. There will also be Celebration of Life at noon on that day at Mile Square Park Golf Course, 10401 Warner Ave., Fountain Valley, CA 92708. You can email starkfamily1933@gmail.com if you have any questions.