Contributions to the tribute of Kenneth A Dominko

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James posted a condolence

Thursday, August 5, 2021

Kenny du jour. If you knew Kenny you have at least one Kenny story to tell. Allow me to share a few with you. Kenny had two phrases that made me smile. They were: "All you gotta do" and "I was gonna get to that." I used to rib him all the time about the first phrase, Kenny took it in stride. Kenny and I worked together on many projects, some planned, some happenstance. It was amusing when a customer would tell us how easy something was to do in a project before it began. We would look at each other and maybe say, "all you gotta do", or smile a knowing smile. I can visualize Kenny protesting; "I can explain!" Years ago I had a job that needed a diver to go down into a 500,000 gallon sewage treatment tank, find and repair an air leak, otherwise the system would have to be shut down and drained to fix the problem. When I mentioned this job to Kenny he said "I can do that." Kenny would dive into any liquid anywhere, and he had everything with him on this visit to do the job. He even had an underwater communication system (radio) so he could talk to people topside. After DiverDan the Driving Man descended the ladder into the blackish goop, he tested what I now referred to as the "shit to shore" radio by asking: "can you hear me?" His voice was loud and clear over the speaker, but I wasn't going to let this opportunity pass. I replied: "You sound like crap sir." Taking what I said literally, Kenny replied that it was probably just a loose wire and "all you gotta do" is jiggle the connector and it should clear up. Ever the optimist he was. Kenny said he could hear me fine. I told him I would try the jiggle and get back to the Creature in the black Lagoon. Kenny, (Creature in the black Lagoon) asks, "Is that laughter I hear?" The plant crew and I were laughing, irony wasn't Kenny's strong suite. Any doubt I had was gone, Kenny was a real Black Water Man. Beware of any sentence that begins with "all you gotta do." Kenny and I had made many scuba dives together, even a night dive during lobster season. I'm not ashamed to admit that "black water" scared the hell out of me, I preferred to see anything that might have me on the menu. Kenny wasn't a heavy drinker but he wasn't a teetotaler either. His alcohol consumption could be measured by what he was having for desert. If desert was ice creme, chances were the ice creme would have at least a shot of Grand Marnier or Chambord (raspberry) cognac poured over it. I introduced Kenny to Baileys Irish creme over vanilla ice creme. Kenny of course ordered chocolate, he wasn't one to follow suit (can I get an Amen to that?). A Kenny restaurant medley: We've been asked to leave all you can eat establishments. Once a waitress placed the check on our table with Kenny saying we aren't done yet, this is after four hours of eating every bisque on the menu. The waitress replied, "Maybe you aren't done but I am, my shift is over." Kenny had a one word review for anything he ate and liked, "Tasty." I'd like to forget all the times I could barely walk after eating with Kenny. When it came to good food my internal clock setting that says "you are full" quit ticking. Other times I suffered watching Kenny eat long after I was finished. He wasn't a hog to trough eater, instead he savored each bite. More than once I've told him that I'll meet him outside when he is done. Once Kenny and I were traveling across Florida and were half way between Fort Pierce and Arcadia when we decided to stop for a bite to eat. We were smack dab in the middle of cow country, every road sign referred to beef in some form, "Beef, its whats for dinner" and so forth. There was really only one restaurant on that road but we had never stopped there to eat despite the many times we traveled that route. First thing I noticed as we pulled up to the restaurant was a hitching post. Entering the door you could immediately tell you were in a red meat restaurant. Pictures of rodeos, a stuffed bull head complete with horns, waitresses dressed like cow girls. Whats for dinner, why beef of course! Oh wait, did I mention Kenny was with me? After looking at the menu forever Kenny decides to order the Fish Platter. I warned him, the waitress warned him, but Kenny was going to have the Fish Platter, case closed. I told Kenny you don't order fish in a cow country restaurant anymore than you would order a Whopper at McDonald's. He didn't care, fish was on the menu so he was having fish. I was almost finished eating when Kenny called the waitress over and asked what was holding up his order. She replied, "The cook had to defrost the fish and that takes about 30 minutes." I had to laugh. I told Kenny he is probably the only person in the world that would go to a five star seafood restaurant and order steak. By the way, the Fish Platter was so bad Kenny couldn't eat it so we ordered two cheesy burgers to go. Okay, maybe you had to be there, but it was funny. When we went to the register to pay, our waitress was behind the cash register. She removed the $20 charge for the fish and said: "I've been here for over ten years and no one has ever ordered the Fish Platter." I had the feeling she was ready to bust her gut laughing. Kenny would have said, "at least I put a smile on someone's face today." The adventures continue: One day I took Kenny with me to Skydive City in Zephyrhills Florida. He had a new camera and was supposed to take some candied shots of me around the drop zone for my scrapbook. But you know Kenny, at times he had the attention span of a goldfish. For my third jump of the day I told Kenny that I would exit the plane first so he could get pictures of my landing. I'd be first jumper landing so he didn't need to look for me in a group of people landing at the same time. Kenny said "Sure thing Jim, no problem." When I landed and looked around I expected to see Kenny close by, camera in hand, but no Kenny anywhere. He wasn't in the van either so the great Kenny hunt began. Eventually I give up the hunt and went to our meeting spot. We did that a lot at Mardi Gras, get separated and meet up at a prearranged place. Watching skydivers land while I waited, I see Kenny walking off the field wearing a tandem harness and a big.smile. The rat bastard did a tandem skydive instead of taking my pictures! You couldn't leave that kid unattended! :-) That's all the Kenny stories y'all gonna get from me today, not that I don't have many, many more. "Dave's Still Not Here" can regal you with Mardi Gras and camping stories, Robert can tell you about the time we sat up most of the night playing music and drinking PB&J's. And now my "I was gonna get to that" conclusion. Kenny made friends wherever he went. He could make a friend in the checkout line at a grocery store, and probably did. In everything Kenny did his intentions were good, even if others didn't see it that way or the outcome didn't end as planned. I've told Kenny that I would like to take a peek into his brain so I could have a look-see at his thought process. He told me not to bother, I'd get lost. I don't believe I will ever meet a more altruistic soul in my lifetime. I've seen times people mistook Kenny's kindness for weakness and exploited it, and in the process lost Kenny as a friend. Kenny once said to me, "it's their loss," and it was. Turn the page. Ralph Waldo Emerson wrote: "a friend may well be reckoned the masterpiece of nature." Those words paint Kenny's picture. One of the the last text messages Kenny sent me read: "Thanks for the memories." Backatcha Kenny my friend, thank you for the memories. I'm happy to have known you and honored you included me in your circle of friends. I'm gonna miss you buddy. Jim Johnson

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Christopher Sakos posted a condolence

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

The `NHRHS Alumni sends their most sincere condolences. May he Rest In Peace.

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The family of Kenneth A Dominko uploaded a photo

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

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The family of Kenneth A Dominko uploaded a photo

Wednesday, July 28, 2021

Kenneth A Dominko

1954 - 2021

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