Kirk departed this world on April 26. Born in 1944 as the only son of Ellis and Fern Rogers he spent all his childhood in Williams, CA.
There he experienced the best of small-town life and developed many life-long friendships. He disliked his first name so everyone called him either Kirk or his nickname Rocket. In high school he excelled at sports, especially as part of the great football team of those years. Some of the school records he set still stand to this day.
He won a football scholarship to Cal Poly San Luis Obispo which he attended for two years.
To follow his career path of mechanical drawing he next transferred to Chico State University. That training enabled him to be hired by the electronics company the Grass Valley Group. Both the company and
Kirk transitioned over the years as the technology changed. For example, Kirk started off drawing electronic schematics manually but later learned to do his job using computers. One of the highlights of his career was being on the team that developed the equipment used for the television transmission of the 1992 Summer
Olympics. He proudly worked for the company as a mechanical engineer for many years until his retirement in 2003.
Kirk really liked the town of Nevada City which was his home for most of his adult life.
People there knew him as being interesting with a quick wit and zest for life. He purchased a house on acreage outside of town that he once referred to as his little slice of heaven and where he hosted many friends and family. He liked to support the artists of the community, and his home displayed the many pieces he’d collected. Kirk enjoyed the wildlife that would wander out of the pine forest through his yard: the deer, foxes, bobcats, turkeys and other birds.
Especially the hundreds of hummingbirds he fed over the years. He had a life-long passion for cars and motorcycles which he had in common with his father who was an auto mechanic. Kirk went from tinkering with old cars as a teen to creating custom hotrods as an adult which he showed in numerous car shows. Dozens of winner’s plaques from those shows hung in his home office. He learned photography and took many photos of the motorcycles,hotrods, plants and animals he loved. He was preceded in death by his parents and all his aunts and uncles. He is survived by his sisters, Susan Schrader, Candace Rogers and Cynthia Rogers plus nieces, cousins, and their children.
A Celebration of Life will be held at a later date. He was one of a kind and there will surely be many interesting stories to be shared.