Kenneth Lyle Cianchette Obituary
Taking a line from one of the numerous poems he committed to memory and loved to recite, Kenneth Lyle Cianchette has "slipped the surly bonds of Earth" for the final time. Ken passed peacefully in his sleep on the morning of February 7, 2023 at the home of his daughter Jean and her husband Bill Bradshaw in Yarmouth, Maine at the age of 98.
Born September 28, 1924 in Pittsfield, Maine, Ken was the 4th of Ralph and Edna (Steen) Cianchette's 7 children and grew up on the edge of the campus of Maine Central Institute, where he graduated at age 17 with the class of 1942. After graduation from MCI, Ken worked building bridges with his father until he was drafted into the Army at age 18 where he was tested and rated as a mechanical genius. He landed in Scotland on June 6, 1943 and served as a radio mechanic in Germany, France and England, returning home in March of 1946. Ken immediately went to work with his brother Carl, and the two brothers, along with brother Bud, incorporated as Cianchette Bros., Inc. in 1949 and continued their father's construction legacy. Brother Chuck joined them in 1954.
While bussing tables in Hollywood, Florida in the off-season in 1947, Ken used his GI Bill to become a private pilot, a passion that continued his entire adult life and which he shared with his brother Chuck. Ken flew small planes to job sites, to baseball games while courting Evelene, to the Allagash for ice fishing, to Belfast for clam digging, to Matinicus Island to visit his favorite lobsterman Dreamy Ames, to Florida for vacations, to fly-ins around the country, and even to Alaska with fellow pilot and good friend Ryan Fendler in the early 90's. He was known as Maine's "Red Baron" after his friend Hap Mathews helped him build a replica of a Fokker DR1 Triplane in which Ken performed aerobatic stunts on weekends at the Owl's Head Transportation Museum. Always one to serve others, Ken was a Trustee at the Museum and a member of many other Aviation Associations. On his 90th birthday, he flew his 1985 Cessna 185 to his birthday party and was presented a plaque by the FAA for 50 years of Dedicated Service in Aviation Safety.
On August 24, 1949 Ken married Nina Evelene "Evie" Lancaster and then built their first home in Pittsfield. Together, Ken and Evie raised their five children while Ken and his brothers built Cianbro Corporation into a successful employee-owned company.
In 1953, with 2 young children at home, he formed Ken Cianchette Inc., focusing on sewer and water projects, bridges and buildings and then returned to Cianchette Bros (later Cianbro Corporation) in 1961. Shortly thereafter, Ken invented and patented the Chinbro pipe grab and beam clamp, which made it easier to do the jobs he and his brothers were hired to do. These inventions resulted in the formation of Chinbro Manufacturing, Inc., and today these tools are used in construction worldwide. Creating, inventing, building and improving are action verbs that appealed to Ken, a deep thinker and pragmatic "doer" always. In the 70s he used his skills to create another invention: a giant peat moss harvesting machine nicknamed Martian Bigfoot that harvested peat from bogs in Downeast Maine. Whether it was heavy machinery, a child's parade float or a Husky mascot costume, if he could dream it, Ken could build it.
Evie and Ken summered on Lake Winnecook in Unity, Maine from 1962-1978 where they enjoyed hosting family and friends on the screened porch he built, and around the lighted horseshoe pits. In true Ken style, he built a party barge using recovered airplane pontoons and a wooden platform, and a one-of-a kind steel tippy tower for the kids. He spent many hours on the lake with his children, his nieces and nephews and their friends giving float plane rides and taking them waterskiing or "down the river" on sunset cruises. For years, Ken loved competing in the Sunday Sunfish Sailing "Winnecook Regattas" organized by his good friend Ryan Fendler.
Ken and Evie loved hosting parties! Big bashes on New Years Eve in the basement on Arbor Lane, designed by Ken for exactly that purpose, camp parties, and roof deck parties in KCB with a sunset view. He was the consummate host, always making sure the fish tank was properly and well-cleaned immediately before guests were due to arrive, much to the consternation of Evie. Though he never danced and was more of an introvert, he took great joy in watching his wife in her element amidst a crowd of friends and family. When they gathered around the player piano, he always knew the lyrics and she never forgot a tune.
The couple began wintering in Key Colony Beach in the 1980s where he enjoyed tending his fruit trees, his burrowing owl nests and fishing with his brother Norris and others on the Nina E, fashioned after a Maine lobster boat, and painted his favorite color, blue. Ken wintered in Key Colony for 30 years where he served on the KCB Beautification Committee and the Inch Beach Association, building bocce courts, gardens and more for the city.
He lived in Pittsfield for almost 80 years and served on the Town Council, the Planning Board, the Industrial Park Board, the SAD 53 School Board and the Pinnacle Ski Club. He was inducted into the MCI Hall of Fame in 1989. At Unity College, in Unity, ME, he served 24 years on the Board of Trustees, was awarded an honorary doctorate degree and later had a dormitory named after him. He served on the Maine Land Use Regulation Commission in the 1970s and chaired an advisory council for the ME Department of Commerce & Industry. He also served as President of the Associated General Contractors of Maine, and on various other boards and committees.
In 2004 he moved to North Yarmouth, ME where he was able to have an airstrip and hangar in his backyard, which gave him great joy. He spent a few winters in Naples, FL from 2014-2018 and in 2020, Ken moved in with son Eric and favorite daughter-in-law Peggy in Falmouth.
He was predeceased by his wife of 48 years, Evie in November of 1997, his parents, his sister Marilyn Pelletier, his brothers Clair, Carl, Norris, Ival (Bud), and Alton (Chuck). He is survived by his five children Eric (Peggy) of Falmouth, ME, Jane (John) Linscott of Fort Myers, FL, Jon of Scarborough, ME, Ann of North Yarmouth, ME, and Jean (Bill) Bradshaw of Yarmouth, ME. He is also survived by grandchildren Jessica (Justin) Dyer, Allison Ray, Michael (Michelle) Cianchette, Kenny Cianchette, Erica (Nicholas) Weightman, Kyle Cianchette, Colby Bradshaw, Emily (Jack) Rayers, Sean Cianchette, Erin Cianchette, Josie Bradshaw, Wilson Ball and Cooper Ball, step-grandchildren Cristy (John) Nielsen and Scotty (Shelley) Linscott, sisters-in-law Helen Cianchette, Raejean Lester and Carol Riley, brothers-in-law C. Leigh Lancaster and Alan Lane, many great-grandchildren, and 30 nieces and nephews who affectionately call him Uncle Lunk.
Ken leaves diverse legacies through his family, his inventions, Cianbro, Unity College, the Owl's Head Transportation Museum and his many contributions in Maine and Key Colony Beach. With a strong belief in leaving things better than he found them, he made a mark on his world, from American Chestnut trees grown from seedlings to ponds he dug, a football field behind MCI that he helped to build in 1990 while undergoing chemotherapy, and much more. He lived his life by the Golden Rule, always willing to lend a helping hand, to do the right thing, and to soldier on.
Ken's family is grateful for the loving care that his very special care team provided in his later years, and to Hospice of Southern Maine who guided them in the last 2 weeks.
Arrangements are by Jones, Rich & Barnes Funeral Home, Portland, ME. Ken will be interred with military honors beside his loving wife Evie in the Village Cemetery on Peltoma Ave. in Pittsfield on Saturday February 18, 2023 at 1:00 PM. From 2-4 PM there will be a reception and opportunity to share memories at his beloved alma mater, Maine Central Institute in the Trustee Memorial Student Center, Savage Dining Hall. Both events are open to all.
A Celebration of Life will be held in Falmouth in the summer. In lieu of flowers, donations in Ken's name may be made to Maine Central Institute, Office of Advancement, 295 Main St., Pittsfield, ME 04967 or online at mci-school.org/giving/make-a-tribute-gift
