Obituary of Kenneth William Pedersen

Kenneth W. Pedersen, October 13, 1949 to May 3, 2022, Brambleton, VA, devoted husband and loving father and grandfather. Ken passed peacefully at Adler Hospice Center on May 3, 2022.

Ken was the older brother to Mark born to Marian and Ken Pedersen in Chicago, Illinois. Ken’s father passed away when Ken was 3 years old. Their mother, Marian, met and married John Cochrane some years later. Together they had another son, David. The family settled in Anaheim, California. Ken enjoyed many sports and especially loved surfing with his high school friends. Ken and Mark spent many summers in Nebraska and Iowa with their extended family, Bob and Angie Pedersen and his uncle, Ron Reidiger. They worked on Ron’s Iowa farm and enjoyed good times with their cousins.

After high school graduation, Ken chose to study business at the University of Nebraska in Lincoln. It was in Omaha that he met his loving wife, Connie, of almost 50 years. He began his career at Northwestern Bell in telecommunications. Connie and Ken were married in 1972, and shortly thereafter Ken accepted a new position at AT&T. They were blessed with a daughter, Maurissa and son, Mark. In 1980, they transferred with the company to Dallas, Texas.

Ken’s career took him and his family to many places including Illinois, New Jersey, and their current home in Virginia. There he was Assistant Vice President for Defense Communications in the AT&T Government Markets. Ken took an early retirement and pursued consulting until joining Winstar Communications where he was Senior Vice President, Large Accounts.

In 2000, Ken suffered health issues that resulted in his retirement. He and Connie worked together tirelessly focusing on his recovery. Mark and Maurissa began their own careers and settled with their families nearby, providing Ken and Connie with 6 beautiful grandchildren who brought them endless enjoyment.

Ken remained a communications man through and through, and often reminisced about his days with AT&T and Winstar. After his retirement and recovery, he never ceased to amaze us with his great memory of the people he knew and the places he visited. Ken always loved to learn and spent many hours working on his computer, as his kids lovingly joked that he was “basically recreating the internet.”

Ken’s and Connie’s favorite pastimes were taking a drive in the country with their dachshund, Tucker, having a quiet lunch at their favorite restaurant, taking in an afternoon movie, and spending time with their family and grandkids. Ken was also known to instigate a game of peek-a-boo with kids he would meet and was delighted by the smiles he would get in return.

Connie and Ken enjoyed many wonderful trips to see family and friends all across the country. He prided himself in the fact he had visited every state except Alaska. It was on their bucket list.

Preceded in death by his father, Kenneth E. Pedersen, mother Marian and her husband John Cochrane. He is survived by his wife, Connie, daughter, Maurissa, son, Mark, daughter-in-law Hannah, and his grandchildren Alexis, Bella, Jackson and Benn Garry, Madeline and Avery Pedersen.

Ken's family thanks you for all your love and prayers throughout the years. Nothing was more precious to Ken than family and friends.

A Celebration of Life Mass will be held at St. Theresa’s Parish Church, 21370 St. Theresa Lane, Ashburn, VA 20147, at 11:00 AM, on Saturday, May 21, 2022.

In lieu of flowers, please donate to your favorite charity in Ken’s name.