Kenneth White Obituary

Kenneth William White

Kenneth William White of Three Forks, Montana, was born March 6, 1966, to David and Thelma (Neal) White. Ken graduated from McComb High School, after which he began working and traveling for OH Materials, which took him to Florida. He then traveled to Montana, where he immediately fell in love with "God's Country". He purchased some land, and he and his dad built a cabin on a mountain in Paradise Valley. To make a living, he started working at Big Sky Carvers in Manhattan, Montana, where he met and soon married his beautiful Montana girl, Rebecca Maccagnano. Together, they built a family of four children: son, Hawken of Three Forks, Montana; daughters, Sicily (Jonathan) Nuernberger of Clayton, North Carolina, Sawyer of Bozeman, Montana, and Sadie of Three Forks, Montana; and then the addition of his adored grandchildren, Luca and Maggie Mae Nuernberger.

His artistic creations began at age 5, when he drew a cartoon for a TV show. Ken became a well-known Master Carver with Big Sky Carvers in Manhattan. For that job, he traveled to China and India, teaching folks how to carve a duck to look like a duck. Carving animals and natural elements was his favorite, but he also made scrimshaws, paintings, and beautiful pieces of art and furniture from weathered wood he found on his property. One notable creation was a collage of hand-carved feathers for an NRA celebration, and his carvings have been sold at Cabela's stores and worldwide. He also carved the Montana State Bird for the 2002 White House Christmas tree, and Ken and Becca were invited to a White House reception to meet First Lady Laura Bush. Ken also carved Christmas ornaments of the Duck Dynasty cast. He made and carved intricate designs on wooden doors and created tables that looked like trout streams, complete with carved fish.

Since 2022, Ken made custom furniture as the woodshop manager at Green Seam Designs. He had a reputation for pulling off the impossible and was the person everyone turned to when they needed a problem solved. His favorite times at GSD were when he could teach someone a new skill or when he could brush off his Kutzall and Foredom and carve away. At work, Ken cared about the final product but much more about the people around him. Ken was a true western mountain man who liked to cook and sing and made musical instruments "just to see if he could".

Another of his true passions was being a licensed master falconer who raised and trained beautiful falcons, hawks, owls and eagles.

Those left with cherished memories are his wife and children; brother, Steve (Kathy) White, Newark, sisters, Cheryl (Paul) Milligan, Riceville, Tennessee, Deb (Kevin) Aukerman, Van Buren, and Jan (Mark) Powell of Rawson; and many nieces and nephews.

Ken passed away Sunday, February 8, 2026, from pancreatic cancer.

A memorial service will be from 3-5 p.m. Sunday, February 15, 2026, at Connect Church, 642 Milky Way Dr., Four Corners, MT.