Ken Cram Memorial Fund

Hello family, friends, and community:

As many of you reading this know, on Tuesday November 21st, 2023, my second father passed away after a two-year medical battle.

I feel blessed to have had over 21 years with Ken in my life. I’ll never forget the first time we met; I was reserved at the tender age of 8, meeting the first important man in my mom’s life since my biological father passed. We went to his place in Lincoln City where he had made my siblings and I their favorite, mac and cheese. However, it was one of my least favorite meals, but I tried to stomach it to not fuss. That’s when it was mentioned that I didn’t like mac and cheese, and he then went out of his way to make me a special sandwich using his “secret” recipe (peanut butter, jelly, butter, and honey all whipped together). I remember falling in love with the sandwich, and him at that moment.

This man stepped up to raise children that were not his own, love and provide for all he could for us. My love of travel, historical places, cars, and airplanes came from him. He showed me how to use tools, taught me how to drive (including manual), and first showed me how to change a tire and oil on our old ’78 project Camaro. He was a hard-headed stubborn man, but a teddy bear when you broke through the surface.

When Ken fell ill in November of 2021, my mom became the sole income of the household. There was no life insurance in place. Before his passing, Ken spent the last 6 months trying to settle as many matters as possible to make things easier for my mom financially. Unfortunately, the final task he could not square away in time was preparing the end-of-life expenses.

I’m reaching out to the community surrounding me asking for help in offsetting the costs my mom is facing during this hardship. The funds collected here will be used towards the costs of cremation, death certificates, and any other end-of-life expenses she encounters as we lay Ken to rest.

When we thought we were going to lose Ken back in September, he made me re-promise him that I would take care of my mother when he was gone and be there for her. I’m doing everything I can physically and emotionally, and hoping those surrounding us can help me ease this financial burden off her plate.

Thank you for taking the time to read this, and I hope you all know how much Ken loved you. I appreciate your support so much.

With love,

Jessica