Arthur Kilpatrick

Arthur Edward Kilpatrick was born on 29 September, 1930 to Emerson Leland Kilpatrick, a railroad engineer, and Lucy Ruckle, both Canadian born and of Irish ancestry. Lucy had Arthur, the last of five children, at their home on Norman Street in southwest Detroit.

Early on, Art developed a passion for motorcycles. His first was a bolt-on “Whizzer” kit that converted his bicycle to a motorized bike. By the time he met future wife Marlene at American Mailers and Binders, where he had taken a job as a truck driver, he had graduated to a classic side-shift Indian “Chief”. Though he prized that bike, he willingly parted with it to buy a wedding ring. Arthur and the boss‘ daughter wed at St. Mary’s of Redford on 10 January, 1953, forgoing a honeymoon for the exciting move into their new home on Donnelly in Garden City.

That Art was eager to welcome children into his life was evident by the string of little Kilpatricks that followed: Kenny on 26 October, 1953, Kerry on 21 April, 1955, Carol on 12 November, 1956, and Kevin on 21 April, 1960. By then the Donnelly quarters had become cramped, prompting a move to a larger home on Brentwood in Livonia. There the baby of the family; Colleen - who Art always referred to as his “Forever birthday present” - was coincidentally born on Art’s birthday - 29 September - of 1961. Art and Colleen loved celebrating their shared birthdays together.

Bouts with TB left Art hospitalized for months at a time. A major career shift saw him leave longtime employer American Motors to become an independent appliance repairman. But Art found time to build his kids a cool treehouse in their backyard. That treehouse, which Art unfortunately had to tear down after the elm to which it was attached was damaged in a thunderstorm, is remembered fondly by Art’s kids today as an expression of love manifested in plywood, nuts and bolts and 4x4s.

Second to his fondness for motorcycles was Art’s interest in guns. He owned several, some with historic significance that he displayed, others that he used regularly for target practice. He was a stickler for gun safety; the primary lesson he imparted to his kids whenever he took them to the range at Proud Lake. They cherish the fact that he spent that time with them, sharing what he considered to be great sport with his offspring.

Art had other hobbies: leatherwork, learned while he was cooped up in Herman Keifer’s TB ward, playing guitar and singing old songs like “She’ll Be Comin’ Around the Mountain” or “Hang Down Your Head Tom Dooley”, woodworking - he had a well-equipped shop in the garage that could churn out nearly anything, from vanities and wall cabinets he crafted for his house, to bird and deer feeders for both the yard in Livonia and a cottage up north.

Which brings us to Art’s favorite place in the whole world: the cabin he and Marlene inherited from Marlene’s parents, on the Muskegon River just outside the town of Hersey. Though Art and Marlene enjoyed traveling, with trips to Florida, Georgia, West Virginia, Washington, D.C., Vermont, Upstate New York, Canada and Northern Michigan (the latter four by motorcycle; a Honda Gold Wing, the last motorcycle Art would own), the cabin always remained the epitome of Art’s idea of a getaway. Nowhere else provided him with the degree of serenity, communing with nature, and quality family time that he found in that retreat. Devoid of treed surroundings when it was purchased in the mid-seventies, it sits in shaded tranquility today, thanks to his patient efforts to cultivate plenteous white pine seedlings there.

Always a practical joker, Art took mischievous delight in pulling inventive pranks. Episodes that come to mind: spelling out messages with fertilizer on a friend’s lawn which became apparent only after the fertilizer caused the grass to become a deeper green, or leaving recordings of himself singing “In the Pines” in a falsetto voice on a cassette deck hidden beneath the kitchen sink at the cabin, knowing that subsequent guests would be surprised upon plugging in the main fuse block to hear what sounded like a uninvited guest.

Art was a simple man who never required sophisticated diversions to give him a sense of fulfillment. While his baby-boomer offspring were restless to sample life in faraway places, acquire the latest tech gadgetry, or develop a discriminating palate for wine, he was content to tread the home turf, watch analog TV, answer his land-line phone, and take photos on his 35mm point-and-shoot, or quaff his elixir of choice: an ice-cold beer.

But characterizing Art solely as simple would do him a disservice. He had the mind of an engineer, to which many detailed schematics he left behind will tacitly attest. He gave projects a great deal of forethought before committing them to paper, which he invariably executed in pen, so confident was he in the virtual prototypes he had developed to perfection in his mind.

Emblematic of Art’s engineering prowess was the lawn swing he fabricated from scratch for the cabin. After a quarter century the seat unfortunately succumbed to rot, but in the process of rebuilding it, Ken, who sat on it countless times but never scrutinized its construction, marveled at the thought and expertise that went into the making of every piece. With Art’s original seat now faithfully replicated, his creation will go on, a testament to a father who always believed in doing his best at everything.

Art’s first grandchild, Trevor, arrived in 1983, followed by Ryan, Megan, Lindsey, Jillayne, Cody, Iain, Kyle, Shannon and Conor. His first great-grandchild, Brooklyn, arrived in 2008, followed by Malachi, Laina, Siena, and Liahna.

Art’s passing followed Marlene’s by a mere 213 days. The family is consoled by the thought that this loving couple, who missed their 60th wedding anniversary by only a month, are once again in each other's esteemed company....forever.

Beloved husband of the late Marlene. Loving father of Ken (Laurie), Kerry (Kathryn), Carol (Kevin) McCarthy, Kevin, and Colleen. Dearest grandfather of 10 and great-grandfather of 5. Visitation Tuesday 5-9pm at the Turowski Life Story Funeral Home 30200 Five Mile (btn Merriman and Middlebelt). Funeral Wednesday 11:00am at the funeral home. Interment Holy Sepulchre cemetery. Please sign the online guest book at www.TurowskiLifeStory.com