William "Bill" Kaes

William “Bill” Kaes, 79, left this world on February 9, 2014, surrounded by his family at his home in Port Orchard.
Bill was born to William and Ruth (Cheyne) Kaes in Boston, Massachusetts, on June 27, 1934. The youngest of three children, he was raised with his two sisters in Boston. It was there that he met the love of his life, Marilyn (Thornton), at the Roxbury Library where they were both working in 1951. Bill and Marilyn were married October 8, 1953, and raised five children together.
Bill entered Boston Naval Shipyard as an apprentice in January, 1953. He broke the Kaes family men’s long standing history as rope makers with his choice to apprentice as an electrician. He graduated from the program to continue his lifelong career in Navy Yards as an electrician, transferring to San Francisco, CA in 1964 and then to Bremerton, WA in 1973 where he retired from a supervisory position at Puget Sound Naval Shipyard in December, 1985.
Bill shared his enjoyment of travelling and camping with his family as his children were growing up. Weekends were often filled with short excursions and camping trips near home, while summers always included an extended vacation travelling and camping throughout California and the southwestern states or driving across the country to see the sights and visit family on the east coast. Bill and Marilyn continued the tradition taking both short and long, leisurely trips with their travel trailer in later years. High on Bill’s list of favorites was their annual trips to Alaska where he spent every minute he could out on his son’s boat fishing for salmon and halibut. Bill’s urge to travel took him beyond the United States with trips abroad - island hopping in Greece, cruising down the Nile River in Egypt, and exploring Europe.
Bill had many loves and interests in his life and was always busy with one project or another. He took pleasure in both indoor and outdoor projects in and around his home of 41 years in Port Orchard; he was gifted at woodworking projects both big and small, and spent years perfecting his train room, modeling his layout after a train station and surrounding countryside in Germany.
When he wasn’t busy with a project, he loved listening to his collection of music, relaxing with a good book, and playing card games. He enjoyed watching football games and finally got to see the Seahawks win the Superbowl! He was also an avid hockey fan and never gave up rooting for his home team, the Boston Bruins.
Bill was a loving father and husband. His words and actions were a model example of family values and he made all of his loved ones feel special. We thank God for the gift of his life and for the time we had with him.
Surviving are his wife, Marilyn; sons Bill (Debbie) Kaes of Ketchikan, AK, Stephen Kaes of Everett, WA, Brian (Debbie) Kaes of Port Orchard, WA; daughters Linda (Rodger) Pryor of Grapeview, WA, and Dianne (Ron) Soete of Belfair, WA; sister Ruth Kilduff of Boston, MA; grandchildren Heidi, Erin, Danielle, Kirsten, Shelly, Dwayne, Michelle, Darrell, Christie, Lisa, Brian, Ronny, Ryan, Sheldon, and Shawna; and great grandchildren Josh, Chris, Landon, Niaomi, Kylie, Morgen, Stormy, Tony, Katie, Chase, Brady, Luna, Aliyah, Aydon, Emma, and Ari.
Bill was preceded in death by his parents and sister Marguerite.
A memorial service will be held at St. Bede Episcopal Church in Port Orchard, Saturday, February 15th at 2 PM.