Obituary
Alonzo Andrew "Kit" Kittinger

Alonzo Andrew “Kit” Kittinger died peacefully early Thursday morning, October 19, 2023, after several months of steady decline due to congestive heart failure.

Kit was born and raised on a farm in the Back Creek Community of Roanoke County, Virginia to his loving mother, Bessie Celeste Kittinger, and his father Claude Daniel. He was preceded in death by his wife Irene, parents, brothers Bub and Keith, sister Dematris, niece Cheryl, and nephew-in-law Chuck. He is survived by his daughter, Celeste. He also leaves behind his sister, Jessica, his nephews, Danny, Steve, Ranny (Cheryl), Rick (Jo), Ron, Kevin, and Thomas (Toni) as well as his nieces, Gerry (Carlton) and Lori. Many grandnieces, grandnephews, great-grandnieces, and great-grandnephews survive him also. Kit will be dearly missed by his daughter, sister, nephews, and nieces as well as his neighbors and friends.

Kit cherished memories from his childhood of getting dressed up and walking down the road to attend Kittinger Chapel in Back Creek on Sundays with Dr. Ballentine as the preacher. Sometimes Dr. William McCauley would preach at the chapel also, but later McCauley started St. John Lutheran Church where Kit, along with his sister Dematris and brother-in-law C. E. became charter members. Other fond memories were of having fights outside with his sisters during which he would throw tomatoes at them. Years later he said he would never think of wasting homegrown tomatoes like that anymore! He also had happy memories of the animals on the farm. Often, he would speak of the mules Dinah and Bett that he plowed many an acre behind. His family had an Irish Setter, Rex, who chased airplanes across the fields of the farm during World War II. Just twelve hours before he died, Kit said that there was an Irish Setter who came to visit him, and he thought it may have been Rex!

In Salem, VA, Kit attended Andrew Lewis High School where he was a well-liked member of the football team and crowned King of Hearts as a senior. His class split the century in half, graduating in 1950. He loved going to high school reunions and keeping in touch with his classmates, even as recently as this summer. Kit continued his education, majoring in economics at The College of William and Mary in Williamsburg, VA, where he also played football during his first two years – he loved football! He joined Phi Kappa Tau fraternity and always expressed pride in the accomplishments of fellow fraternity brothers. After his sophomore year of college, Kit joined the Army, serving during the Korean War. He took basic training with the 101st Airborne Division at Camp Breckenridge, KY, and then served three years at Fort Devens in Massachusetts. When his army service ended with an honorable discharge, he completed his education at William and Mary, graduating in 1957. In 2019, he visited the campus one final time to attend a family reunion. He loved The College William and Mary and its beautiful campus!

Kit worked as a salesman for most of his life. He first sold insurance in Roanoke, VA, where he met his future wife, Irene, through a mutual friend. She bought an insurance policy from him, and he was impressed that she paid for it with an annual premium (however, he always liked to say that he had been paying the bills ever since!) Kit and Irene married in 1960, and lived in Alexandria, LA; Charlotte, NC; Baton Rouge, LA; Tampa, FL; and Cary, NC. In Charlotte, NC, Kit and Irene welcomed the birth of their daughter, Celeste.

Most of Kit’s career was spent as an outside salesman selling dictation equipment, postage meters, mailing equipment, and accounting machines. He sold equipment in many cities in the southeastern U. S. and all over the Research Triangle Park in NC. He took a lot of pride in covering the territories of UNC-Chapel Hill and Duke University, selling equipment to professionals in law, medicine, education, insurance, and government. He liked to joke that he had been locked up both in the Florida Penitentiary in Starke, FL, and Raleigh’s Central Prison while selling dictation equipment! While working in Baton Rouge, LA, Kit sold dictation equipment to his most famous customer, televangelist Jimmy Swaggart. He said when he stepped into Jimmy’s office his feet sank several inches into the plush shag carpeting!

In Louisiana, Kit enjoyed fishing while Irene enjoyed birdwatching. Once living in Charlotte, Kit made friends quickly with Irene’s friends from the Mecklenburg Audubon Society. He always thought they were one of the nicest groups of friends they had. Also, in Charlotte he and Irene joined St. John’s Baptist Church where they attended regularly and enjoyed fellowship with their church family.

In 1975, Kit requested a job transfer to North Carolina and decided the Raleigh area was the best place for his family. He enjoyed being closer to family in NC and VA. While working in Raleigh, Kit was awarded several outstanding trips for his achievements in sales. He won a trip to Superbowl XV in New Orleans just after the American hostages were released from Iran, and saw the Superdome wrapped in a giant yellow ribbon to welcome them home! In 1990, he went on his all-time favorite trip to Hawaii during which he took a helicopter ride over the island of Kauai, stayed at the Ilikai Hotel on Waikiki Beach, and visited The National Cemetery of the Pacific, the “Punchbowl”, as well as Pearl Harbor.

After retirement in 1994, Kit became a family support volunteer with Hospice of Wake County (now called Transitions LifeCare). He enjoyed getting to know patients and their families whom he served. Kit also loved getting to know members of the hospice patient teams with whom he worked. He greatly enjoyed the birthday parties his team members had together and all the stories they shared. When Kit began having heart problems at the age of 70 (over 21 years ago), Dr. Daw became his cardiologist. He adored Dr. Daw and all the staff in his office. Also, he greatly admired his primary care physician, Dr. Adiga, and other staff at the Raleigh V. A. Clinic I. Finally, when it was his turn to be a hospice patient, he appreciated everyone at Transitions LifeCare who took care of him from his nurse Tanya to his aide Brandon.

Kit was truly a people person! Except for a couple of horrible bosses, nearly everyone loved him. Since his death, words like “great guy” and “nurturing” keep coming up in conversation with his daughter, Celeste, who loved him more than anyone else in the world. He was a wonderful person to talk with and told great stories that people enjoyed listening to. The morning after his death one of his neighbors smiled and reflected, “Whenever I saw that guy out there walking, I always came out to talk with him. He was so much fun to talk to! He was a great guy!” From his meager beginnings until the end of his life Kit tried to be the best person he could possibly be in all facets of his life and accomplish this he did. He will be sorely missed.

Kit requested that any memorial contributions be sent to Transitions LifeCare (250 Hospice Circle, Raleigh 27607).