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Kenneth Gorham

July 22, 1948

Nov. 26, 2012

Kenneth Vaughn Gorham, 64, died Nov. 26, 2012, at Seattle Medical & Rehabilitation Center after a long battle with Huntingtons Chorea.

Ken was born in Enterprise to parents Owen Gorham and Sue (Davis) Gorham, the youngest of six siblings.

He grew up in Wallowa and graduated from Wallowa High School in 1966.

After graduation, he joined the Navy and was stationed at Moffet Field Naval Base in Mountain View, Calif. While in the Navy, he spent time on both the USS Enterprise and the USS Hornet.

He met and married Sara Morrison in 1971 and they had son Christopher Vaughn and daughter Angela Kay. Their marriage ended in divorce.

In 1978 Ken moved to Redmond, Wash., where he met Karen DeBoer. They were married in 1979.

Ken enjoyed playing pool and pinochle with wife Karen, and was an avid Seattle Seahawks and Mariners fan. He had a close relationship with his mother-in-law Betty Shattuck, 94.

Because of the increasing severity of his Huntingtons disease symptoms, Ken moved in 2008 from the care of his wife at home to the Seattle Medical and Rehabilitation Center, where she stayed in close contact.

Ken is survived by wife Karen of Kirkland, Wash.; daughter Angela Heidel and her husband Adam of Roseville, Calif.; stepson Dean DeBoer and wife Tara of Snohomish, Wash.; stepdaughter Leslie Taggart and husband James of Winlock, Wash.; eight grandchildren; mother-in-law Betty Shattuck of Everett, Wash.; and numerous nieces and nephews.

Ken was preceded in death by his son Christopher in 2005, parents Owen and Sue, and his siblings, Donna, Rodney, Alvin, Larry and Dick.

No service is planned. Ken donated his body to research at University of Washington Medical Center in hopes that it may help in finding a cure for Huntingtons Chorea.

Donations in Kens memory can be made to Huntingtons Disease Society of America at www.hdsa.org/nw-chapter/nwchap.html or HDSA Northwest Chapter, 17406 Redhawk Drive Arlington, WA 98223