Kenneth Clemet Cutcher

Kenneth Clement Cutcher, formerly of Toledo, Ohio, passed away on April 1, 2026, at Aspen Grove Senior Living in Lambertville, Michigan. He was 100 years old.

Ken was born on January 3, 1926, and was the only child of Martha and Clement Cutcher.

Ken was a graduate of DeVilbiss High School. While still in high school at the age of 17, Ken enlisted in the United States Army to fight for our country in WW2. This was in December of 1943. Being in his senior year, the army allowed him to finish his classes but not attend his graduation ceremony. Immediately after classes ended, Ken was shipped off to training camp and in a short while ended up in North Africa where he was stationed at various army air bases. Ken was a radio operator with the Army Air Corp. He had learned a lot about using and fixing radios after having worked at Torrence Radio in downtown Toledo during high school. He had many stories about the places he visited and was stationed at, including Khartoum in Sudan, Casablanca and Marrakesh in Morocco and Dakar in Senegal. He did not drink alcohol yet, and he said that he would trade his beer rations to his older buddies for their ice cream and Coca Cola rations. Ken served his country from March 18th, 1944 to July 4th, 1946, when he was honorably discharged with the rank of Seargent. Of his time in the service, Ken often said that he went in as a boy and came out as a man.

After the war, Ken came back to Toledo. Jobs were plentiful and after trying out a couple different employers, Ken settled in with the Ohio Bell Telephone Company which would eventually become AT&T. He worked there until he retired in 1991. He started out climbing poles and installing phones and ultimately worked on the test board and in engineering, designing cable routes in various areas of the city. Ken was a diligent worker and worked all the overtime available. Although he was offered management positions several times, he always turned them down, preferring to stay in his union.

Ken bought a newly built house in West Toledo in 1947. His mother, Martha, moved in with him. His father had passed away at an early age during the depression when Ken was 12 years old. Ken eventually met and married his wife, Gloria. They married in April of 1949 and shared 74 years of marriage until Gloria's passing in 2023. The marriage produced two sons, Randy and Greg. Ken, Gloria and their sons, along with Martha, lived together in the house until Martha's death in 1963. Ken, Gloria, and the sons continued to live in the house until the boys eventually grew up and moved out.

Ken was extremely handy and was always making or fixing something. He built his own garage and put an upstairs addition on his house with no assistance. He was particularly good with electrical things and electronics and once even diagnosed and fixed an electrical issue on one of his son's cars that a prominent auto shop could not diagnose. Despite his busy schedule, Ken always had time to hit fly balls to his sons and neighborhood kids or throw a football. He enjoyed this very much and once commented that he did not know it at the time, but one day hung his ball glove up in the garage for the last time.

Ken was a loyal fan of the Detroit Tigers baseball team. He was also an accomplished fisherman, taking his own Ohio earthworms to Tennessee when on bass fishing vacations, as they were not available in Tennessee, and were the proven favorite bait of the bass. Later on after retiring, he and Gloria enjoyed fishing at Fletcher's Pond near Alpina Michigan. Probably some of Ken's most noteworthy skills were his photography skills. He entered many amateur photography contests in the 1950's and 1960's and always placed high, often winning. And this was way before digital photography when you had to adjust your camera settings manually. His favorite subjects were people. This hobby continued on through the years, and he thoroughly enjoyed taking pictures of his grandkids once they came along. After he withdrew from competition, he would judge slides for local camera clubs. He was highly sought after for his expertise and sharp eye.

Ken is survived by his son; Randy (Diane) Cutcher; granddaughters, Courtney (fiancé Blake) Cutcher, Kelsey Cutcher, Caitlin Cutcher and Kendra (Nolan) Carroll. He was preceded in death by his parents, Clement and Martha Cutcher; and his son, Greg (Robin) Cutcher.

The family would like to thank the staff at Aspen Grove and the Heartland Hospice of Monroe for their care and support of Ken over recent years.

Services will be private and handled by the Cremation Society of Toledo and Ottawa Hills Memorial Park. The family suggests memorial contributions be made to Heartland Hospice of Monroe or a charity of the donor's choice.