C. Kenneth Grimes FAYETTEVILLE — Retired Chief Warrant Officer 4 C. Kenneth Grimes, 80, of Fayetteville, passed away Saturday, Dec. 22, 2012. He joined his beloved wife of 58 years, Ellen Neighbours Grimes, in Heaven. He was born and raised in Benson. Kenneth joined the U.S. Army at the age of 17 to provide for his mother and siblings in 1949. He was first stationed in Germany and then transferred to Korea. He was present at the Korean Armistice signing and continued to keep in touch with his Korean War buddies for the rest of his life. Mr. Gimes served for three tours of duty in Vietnam and was also stationed in Thailand, Okinawa, Germany, California and Fort Bragg. He was a dedicated Army recruiter. During his 30-year military career, he earned the Legion of Merit, Bronze Star Medal, Air Medal, Army Commendation Medal (4th Oak Leaf Cluster), Good Conduct Medal (4th Oak Leaf Cluster), National Defense Service Medal (1st Oak Leaf Cluster), Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal, Army Occupation Medal (Germany), Vietnam Service Medal, Republic of Vietnam Campaign Medal and the Rifle M-16 Expert Qualification Badge. He and his wife raised three children between duty assignments. He frequently wrote his children from all over the world and sent reel to reel tapes describing the country he was in, the culture and why it was important to help others. His children were always delighted to see what came home with him in foot lockers. There are hundreds of photos of his travels around the world that he loved to tell others about for hours. He loved numbers and spent a lot of time figuring out budgets and ways to save money. He loved senior citizen discounts and taught his children how to spend money wisely and soldier on. Kenneth Grimes was known as "Mr. Fix It" in the neighborhood. If it had a motor, he could fix it. After his retirement in 1980, he often came home with what everyone else saw as junk, but he saw as a challenge to fix something nobody else could. His favorite companions were his buddy, Miss Fluffy, crossword puzzles and his children and grandchildren. To carry on his passion for life are daughter, Teresa G. Marlowe and husband Ed; granddaughter, Ashley; son, Ronald K. Grimes and wife Natalie Hovsepian; son, David L. Grimes and wife Erin; and grandsons, Austin and Zachary. A visitation will be held at Jernigan-Warren Funeral Home on Friday, Dec. 28, 2012, from 6 to 8p.m. A funeral service will be held on Saturday, Dec. 29, 2012, at 11 a.m. at Jernigan-Warren Funeral Home chapel in Fayetteville, with a full military honor burial following in Lafayette Memorial Park on Ramsey Street. The family asks that in lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Kenneth's names to Disabled American Veterans, or your favorite charityThe family will receive friends from 6pm to 8pm on Friday, December 28, 2012 at Jernigan-Warren Funeral Home The funeral will be held at 11am on Saturday, December 29, 2012 in Jernigan-Warren Chapel Burial with Full Military Honors will follow in Lafayette Memorial Park on Ramsey Street.