It is with sadness that I note the passing of Ken Farragut (1928-2014) to whom I am related by marriage. (Ken's daughter, Debbie, married my late brother-in-law, Howard.) Ken was truly a giant man both in stature and heart. I first met Ken when he was in his 50s and I in my 20s. I recollect a man with shoulders so wide they barely fit through a door frame, a booming voice with just a hint of the South, and an extended palm attached to an intimidatingly massive hand. I accepted his hand and watched as mine just disappeared. I knew he had played pro football, but I hardly expected a man in his 50s to be in such good shape. In fact, one of the things I admired about Ken was his sensitivity to fellow NFL alumni who he said, "break my heart seeing them hobbled by old injuries and arthritis at our NFL alumni get-togethers." Ken left pro football after only four seasons. Like Jim Brown, he quit before injuries took their toll. What you will not read in Ken's obits is the reason he left the NFL.

Ken earned a scholarship to play football at Ole Miss where he became an All-American. In fact, he was selected for the old College All-Star Game that pitted the top college seniors against the previous year's NFL champs, which used to be played at Chicago's Soldier Field. Given the money involved in the NFL today, a game of this type is no longer allowed by NFL teams or players' agents.

Drafted by the Philadelphia Eagles in 1951, Ken became an All-Pro center in 1953. After the 1954 season, Ken was called in by management an told his salary would be cut by 20% to $4,000. (Not a typo.) Ken was incredulous and told them, "I make All-Pro and you're cutting me a $1,000? If that's all I'm worth, I quit." Management blinked, and in fact, offered a $1,000 raise, but Ken kept to his word. He did quit and moved home to his mom's three-room "shack," as he put it, in Mississippi. He asked his mother what he should do, and she replied, "Son, everybody needs a roof over their head, why don't you go into the roofing business?"

Ken returned to Philly and was hired on at a roofing company. He prospered and several years later the owner called him into his office. "Ken, I'm retiring and I want you to buy my business." "I don't have the money," replied Ken. "Yes, you do. I am going to loan it to you. The business is collateral." The business Ken built became the largest roofing company on the East coast. One of his two sons now runs it.

The road was not all smooth sailing. There were family issues and so forth. Yet, Ken dealt with it all with patience, perhaps even letting himself be taken advantage of at times--a gentle man. Ken's doctors recently told him diabetes had caused gangrene in one of his legs; they wanted to amputate part of it. Ken refused to have the operation. He decided his time had come. Good bye, by friend.

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