Kent B. Jordan, 81, of Athens PA passed away on July 13th after an ex- tended illness.

Kent was born on July 11th, 1938 to Donald and Joyce Jordan, both life- long Valley residents. Growing up in Sayre, Kent joined the US Navy in November 1955 at the age of 17. One of his most memorable Navy experiences occurred in May 1956 when the vessel he was assigned to collided with the battleship USS Wisconsin. "I was still 17 and had just gotten off my shift," he recalled, "I was laying in my bunk, seasick as hell, when this tremendous explosion went off. I ran up to the top and opened the hatch and there she was. It was right then I asked myself what the heck had I gotten into."

Despite that initial setback, Kent would go on to serve an honorable 20 year career as a Navy Corpsman, to include a 13 month tour in Vietnam while assigned to the US Marine Corps.

Upon his retirement from the Navy in 1975, Kent resettled back to the Valley and enjoyed a successful second career at IBM (later Lockheed-Martin) in Owego NY. Soon after his retirement and never one to remain idle, Kent then worked part-time at State-Line Auto for the next 16 years, stopping only after undergoing heart by-pass surgery in the summer of 2014.

His hobbies included camping at Pine Cradle Lake, puttering around the garage, and watching NASCAR and Yankee baseball. His passion, however, was riding his Gold Wing motorcycle. He was a member of Gold Wing Road Riders Association, Chapter R, and served two years as President in 1991/1992.

He is survived by his wife of 43 years, Gloria, daughters Debbie Hankins (spouse Bill) and Michele Pierce (spouse Jamie), step-daughters Michele Licata (spouse Joe) and Tammy Winters (spouse Tom), Step-son Kevin Brown (spouse Pearl), sister Sue Port, brother Kevin Jordan (spouse Lori), and extended family to include 10 grandchildren.

He is pre-deceased by parents Donald and Joyce Jordan, brothers Dale and Alan and his first wife, Joan.

"Today we are here to say

Shipmate... the watch stands relieved

Relieved by those you have trained, Guided, and Led

Shipmate you stand relieved. We have the watch... Boatswain..Standby to pipe the side...Shipmate's going Ashore.."

A graveside memorial service will take place on Friday at 4pm at the Tioga Point Cemetery with full military honors.  In lieu of flowers donations may be sent to Animal Care Sanctuary at,   353 Sanctuary Hill Ln, Smithfield, PA, or the Bradford County Humane Society, Route 220 PO Box 179 Ulster PA 18850.

Those who wish may share a memory by visiting www.tiogapointcremation.com Caring assistance provided by Cooley­ Tioga Point Cremation and Burial Options in Athens, PA.