Kenneth Charles Leach was born in San Antonio, Texas, February 6, 1941. He was an honor graduate of Eastland High School and senior class president of 1959. In high school when the coaches tried to recruit him for the football team, when he asked his dad, he said if you have that much energy, get a job, so he started working at Safeway as a bagger, janitor, and stocker working up to checker and assistant manager.

He worked his way through college by attending night classes at Ranger Junior College. When he joined his family, he attended night classes at San Antonio Junior College while working as a surveyor for the Texas Highway Department. Finally, he arrived at the University of Texas where he worked supervising dorm residents, picking up laundry, and repossessing used cars.

He started dating Christina Stroebel in 1963, and they were married July 17, 1964. He quit school and worked as a credit reporter for Dun and Bradstreet while Chris finished her degree at Texas Lutheran College. They moved to Austin where Chris taught school and Ken returned to UT, but his plans to finish his degree were interrupted when he got his draft notice on their two year anniversary.

He reported to Ft. Polk, Louisiana, for basic August 1, 1966. The next three years were spent in Ft. Sam Houston, San Antonio, Ft. Eustis, Virginia, and finally Ft. Riley, Kansas, where he served as an instructor at the POR school after going through Officer Candidate School. He completed his tour as a First Lieutenant in 1969.

Returning to Austin, he again attended UT and quickly completed his Bachelor of Science in Education December 1970, took over the classes he had taught while student teaching Texas History, and was quickly recruited by his principal at Porter Junior High to begin a Masters in Education. He completed that in 1972, worked for Elgin ISD as assistant superintendent for curriculum, and then was selected one of ten fellows for a doctoral program at UT with Texas Education Agency, 1977. Completing the program except for the dissertation, he was hired by Katy ISD 1979 where Gordon Brown hired him as Assistant Superintendent working in construction, maintenance of facilities, transportation, demographics, and other support services until he retired as Executive Director of Planning and Facilities in 1997.

He continued working as a consultant for several smaller school districts, helping with writing bid proposals, contracting with construction personnel, & engineers—Halletsville, Shiner, Goliad, Aransas Consolidated, Eastland, and other diverse projects with Houston Community College, St. John the Divine Episcopal Church, Bear Creek Baptist Church, and NATCO.

He played soccer and baseball with his young grandchildren, carved pumpkins to their specifications on the patio, and attended baseball and football games as well as band concerts and dance recitals.

He enjoyed yard-work and growing hastas, azaleas, and daylilies in his younger years. He was always passionate about learning with special interests in Texas history, westward development, and the wars. He enjoyed collecting antiques and books, searching antique malls and book and paper shows. Though he was declining the past few years and stopped working the end of 2012, he still continued to enjoy reading until this spring. His life's work was in education; he worked in construction to save the taxpayers' money by insisting on fiscal responsibility and accountability in all areas. He was an articulate communicator with school administration, construction and engineering firms, and the public.

Ken is survived by his wife Christina of 56 years, his daughter Kelli Davis and husband Joe, his daughter Heather Broeder and husband Paul, and his son Jonathan Leach and partner Maryellen Sarles; his grandchildren Brandon and Aaron Davis, Lance and Carlee Broeder, and Becki and Logan Sarles. He is predeceased by his parents Lyman and Estelle Leach, brother Harold, and grandson Colton Davis. Ken is also survived by his brothers; Lyman Leach of Big Spring, TX, David Leach of Seattle, WA, and Don Leach of Eastland, TX.

Kelli: I remember my Dad as an educator, both literally in his job and at home as well. He always supported me in my quest for knowledge, all the way through college and graduate school. My father was benevolent and protective towards his children. He had a wonderful sense of humor when he chose to use it. He could be an engaging storyteller, especially on the topics of history and the military. He was not afraid of hard work, and he was a dependable provider all his life. I'm so proud to have been a daughter of such an intelligent and generous man.

Heather: I loved asking my Dad questions. He was well-read, insightful, objective, and a great summarizer. I loved my Dad's intellectual curiosity, tenable logic, analytical skills, and his commitment to generously provide for his family and extended family.

Jonathan: Dad wasn't an easy person but he certainly made up for that by constantly ensuring that everybody is taken care of, whether they be family or not. His work ethics were second to none, setting an example to his children what hard work and persistence can achieve. Considering his humble beginning, he finished strong and made his family proud for he was an embodiment of a self-made man.

In lieu of flowers our family desires to support the benevolence fund at St. John Lutheran Church.

St. John Lutheran Church will seat guests every other row to ensure social distancing. Temperatures will be checked at the door.

Anyone can watch the live stream of the service (or a recording later) by going to https://stjohn.tv/ and scrolling down to the link for Ken Leach Service.

Brandon: One time I was staying overnight in Houston. I had sleep issues and could not sleep by myself. GiGi was trying to sleep with me and got up. I asked her where she was going as she walked downstairs. While holding her pillow, she said she was going to the bathroom. Pop came out of his room and asked what was going on. He told me I could lie down with him. We talked about history as I tried to go to sleep. Not long after, we heard GiGi's alarm go off. Pop turned to me and said, "you hear that? You kept GiGi up all night." He smiled at me and let me sleep in his bed until later in the morning.

Lance: Pop always had interesting things to share with me and was always interested in learning things about my life as well. I learned a lot from him and I am so glad to have been able to talk with him as often as I did.

Carlee: Pop was really sweet to me and always told me I was smarter than the average bear, which boosted my confidence. I also knew he always loved me.

Aaron: I remember one time we came to Houston for Christmas. I was around four years old. Pop remarked about how much I had grown and then picked me up. I knew it was going to be a great Christmas.