Kevin R. Otterson
Kevin Reed Otterson, 63, of Sahuarita, AZ, passed away Tuesday, July 25, 2023, after a battle with Alzheimer’s/Dementia.
Kevin was born May 3, 1960, in Whitehall, to Lester and Florence (Knutson) of Blair. He grew up in Blair and was an accomplished athlete in basketball, baseball, track, and softball. After graduating from Blair High School, he moved to the Seattle, WA, area. There he enjoyed bowling, which is where he met Traci, his wife-to-be.
Kevin worked for The Boeing Company for 40 years before retiring and moving to Arizona. He was an aerospace mechanic who had assignments on several airplane programs. Notable among these was the Airplane on Ground (AOG) program, which sent him to many exotic places worldwide. Some of his favorites were Egypt, Tahiti and Copenhagen. He ended his career on the Boeing Flight Line where he prepared airplanes for delivery.
Kevin shared a love of reading with Shannon, listening to music with Kylie, and watching Bret play sports. He loved spending time with his grandson, Brody, especially at the bowling alley and in the pool. Kevin enjoyed gardening and being outdoors, storm watching, and solving the New York Times crossword puzzle. His sense of humor was central to who he was and was often kidding around and laughing. He was a hardworking, intelligent man who was passionate about Wisconsin sports—Packers, Brewers, Bucks and Badgers. He was also President of the Friday Night PBR Club, a gathering of coworkers.
Kevin is survived by his mother, Florence, of Blair; wife of 25 years, Traci, of Sahuarita, AZ; children: Shannon (Cody) Fichter, Kent, of WA; Kylie (husband Louis, son Brody) Ives, of Sahuarita, AZ; Bret, of Sahuarita, AZ; brother, Les (Vicki), of Baraboo; sister, Carla, of Baraboo; sister-in-law, Karen Otterson (wife of Jeff), of Wisconsin Dells; parents-in-law, Bruce and Carol Kraemer, of Edmonds, WA; sisters-in-law: Tamara (Brian) Glass, of Bend, OR, and Sheri Henderson, of Mukilteo, WA; nephews: Hans (Jovan) Otterson, of Stuttgart, Germany; Kelly (Emily) Spady, of Everett, WA; Stefanie (wife of Lars) Otterson, of Evansville; Tom (Rachel) Otterson, of Silver Springs, MD; Joe Otterson, of Phoenix, AZ; nieces: Krystal Neenan, of Granite Falls, WA; KariAnn Otterson, of Phoenix, AZ; and many other great nieces and nephews.
He was preceded in death by father, Lester; brother, Jeff; nephew, Lars; and maternal and paternal grandparents.
Donations in Kevin’s memory may be made to Alzheimer’s Association: www.alz.org.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date.
