Kenneth J. Shaw

You could say Kenny Shaw is a well known local figure. A veteran of both the Saugus and Boston police departments, Ken's personality, jokes, and stories never fail to charm and entertain everyone he meets. Born in Lynn the oldest of five and a graduate of Lynn Trade High, Ken has been a resident of Saugus since 1958. He is happily married and has two daughters and two sons.

Ken Shaw has had a variety of different experiences. He served a tour of duty off of Vietnam in the U.S.S. Ranger, a Navy aircraft carrier. After his honorable discharge in 1964, he worked as a stationary fireman in the Lynn Hospital and soon earned his second class fireman's license.

His life's goal though was to be a police officer. In 1965 he got onto the reserve list for the Saugus Police, and on April Fools' Day of 1966 he got his long standing wish and became a regular patrolman. The picture to the right shows Ken back in his early days on the force.

His time with the Saugus Police was eventful. He managed to apprehend the man who had robbed the Robert Hall Store in Chelsea after a car chase and gun battle, and in 1967 he became the president of the Saugus Brotherhood of Police.

In 1970 he joined the Boston Police Department. He went through the intense FBI certification course for fingerprinting in Quantico, VA and eventually became a detective. He worked on numerous high-profile cases (such as the Charles Stuart case) and in his spare time started a program fingerprinting kids and providing their parents with ID cards for emergency use. His program started in Cliftondale, Saugus, but quickly expanded into Boston with sponsorship from Bank of Boston. In the end, his team handed out ID cards to the parents of approximately 80,000 kids.

His official work in the Police Department involved searching crime scenes for evidence, fingerprinting, and the processing of blood & blood related products; he started this work well before rubber gloves and other modern precautions were manditory. While assigned to this position, Ken was diagnosed with hepatitis C which has since led to the failure of his liver.

As a direct result of his failing health, Ken was forced to retire from the job he loved at the end of 1997. Although he'd always been dextrous and skilled in his hobbies of stained glass and ceramics, now his hands are too shaky for such detailed work -- it is difficult for him to even write.

Update:

Although Ken had a successful transplant, complications afterwards caused him to go into a coma. He passed away in the afternoon of December 23, 1998. The funeral will start on Wednesday at 9:30 AM at the Bisbee-Porcella Funeral Home (5349 Lincoln Avenue, Saugus) and will be followed by a Funeral Mass in the Blessed Sacrament Church (14 Summer Street, Saugus). Visiting hours are on Monday from 7 - 9 PM and on Tuesday from 2 - 4 & 7 - 9 PM. In lieu of flowers donations to his memory may be made to the Ken Shaw Fund, care of Saugus Co-operative Bank, Box 988, Saugus, MA 01906 or the Memorial & Honor Program, St. Jude's Children's Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105-1905.