Kenneth Ray Heckathorn

Kenneth Ray Heckathorn, 67, of Leesburg, passed away unexpectedly Tuesday, Sept. 17, 2013 at Christ Hospital in Cincinnati.

He was born May 17, 1946 in Cincinnati, the son of the late Loren Alva and Ida Frances (Kerns) Heckathorn of Leesburg.

He was a 1964 graduate of Fairfield High School in Leesburg and very involved with the FFA. In the mid 1960s, he worked for Collins Packing Company in Greenfield. In the late 1960s, with $500 in his pocket, he started his own bulldozing and excavating business where he operated several pieces of heavy equipment. In 1990, he launched his own trucking company known as Heckathorn Enterprises Inc. and ran this until a truck accident in 1998.

He was a well-known farmer around the Leesburg area for the majority of his life. He loved hunting, camping and had been a member of the Greenfield Archery Club and the Deer Park Bow Hunters Club several years ago. He was also a great mechanic and welder, skills that he used throughout his life.

He is survived by six children: daughters, Nichole Ashley (Dan) Somers, Sherry Lynn Heckathorn, and Rebecca Lynn Heckathorn; sons, Nicholas Anthony Heckathorn, Nathan Alan (Shelby Collins) Heckathorn and Nathanial Adam Heckathorn all from Leesburg; three grandchildren, Amea Michele Heckathorn, Joseph Alexander Somers, and Colton Ray Heckathorn all from Leesburg; and the mother of his children, Rebecca Bowers Heckathorn of Leesburg; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

In addition to his parents, he was preceded in death by two brothers, Paul Eugene Heckathorn and Edward Earl Heckathorn.

Services will be 10 a.m. Saturday, Sept. 21 at the Turner Funeral Home, Leesburg. Burial will follow in the Pleasant Hill Cemetery, Leesburg. Visitation will be 4-8 p.m. Friday at the funeral home.

Memorial donations are directed to the Heckathorn Family c\o Turner Funeral Home, P.O. Box 252, Leesburg, Ohio 45135. 

For more information, go to www.turnerfuneralhomes.cc.