Martin Habalewsky
Ken Nemeth was one of my dearest and closest childhood friends. I treasure my memories of our playing together in our close-knit northend Detroit neighborhood and at St. Rita Elementary School. He was a mentor, role model and inspriration to me and the other kids on Cardoni Street -- where we hung out at each other's homes, in the street and in nearby playgrounds. In 2012, when I was very ill, I reached out to Ken, via LinkedIn. We had a very long and interesting exchange there and by email. I am so grateful I had that opportunity to tell him how much our friendship meant to me. He modestly denied being a mentor to me, but it was true. As a child, Ken was a natural athlete. He encouraged me to strive for excellence. Also, he was very intellectual, reading constantly. It is so surprise to me that he had an outstanding career as a geologist in the oil industry. When Ken was working for Shell Oil, in his early career years, he wrote a long and interesting letter to my parents. In it he provided great detail on his graduate studies and career. Also, he thanked them for everything they had done for him. Personally, I really enjoyed reading the full-text version of the obituary, listing all of Ken's career and professional association highlights. I learned about Ken's passing by reading an old edition of my home city's daily newspaper, where his obituary was published on June 21. I missed seeing it on that day because my wife Ruth and I were enroute to a vacation in Boston. I live a few miles away from St. Clair, Michigan -- in Port Huron -- and would have attended the funeral there had I been home. To Ken's wife Sandra and daughter Samantha, please accept my sincere condolences. Cheers to you, Ken, for a life well-lived.