Joseph Ray “Joe” McKenzie was born on February 5, 1961 in Pirmasens, Germany, the loving son of Florencia Koger and Ernest Ray McKenzie. Joe graduated from Eisenhower High School in Lawton, OK in 1979, where he excelled in athletics and was a member of the National Honor Society.

Due to his outstanding high school performance, Joe received a congressional appointment and joined the Class of 1983 at West Point on R-Day. After plebe year, Joe was fortunate enough to be assigned to the legendary F-2 “Zoo,” where he naturally gravitated to the Military Affairs Club and served as a leader in the Rally Committee.

Steve Klynsma recalls Joe as “one of the friendliest, most welcoming, and unassuming guys I’ve ever known. I remember being regularly moved by the beautiful music I’d hear from his room as he played his 12-string guitar. He later sold me his old six-string and then patiently taught me to play it. I still have and play that guitar to this day, using the ‘left pinky on the pick guard’ technique he taught me. We enjoyed a mutual respect and a shared desire to understand our respective beliefs.”

Joe’s natural leadership skills and keen mind allowed him to excel in the military and in mathematics. He served as the F-2 Zoo company commander, followed by a successful career in the Army. His strength in math enabled him to teach middle and high school students. Steve Klynsma says, “While [Joe] did extraordinarily well in math, I remember him not doing quite as well in chemistry. His difficulties resulted in Joe and a platoon of F-2 Zoo cows spinning General Sedgewick’s spurs at midnight before the final exam and barely beating the officer of the day back to the barracks. The world is a lesser place in his absence.”

“Ranger Joe” McKenzie selected Infantry as his branch of assignment. His Army service included completing two company commands and serving as the post commander of Ray Barracks, Germany. Beginning in 1992, Joe served in the U.S. Army Reserve and the Georgia National Guard. His deployments include Operation Just Cause in Panama and IFOR 1 and SFOR 9 in Bosnia and Herzegovina. He later served in the Pentagon as a chemical, biological, radiological, and nuclear (CBRN) officer.

What should a man do for his country once he has finished pursuing his warrior calling? Joe found his real love, teaching. He taught history, math, science, English, reading, and tech classes in Rome, GA, where he resided with Kathleen and their two children, Joshua Ray and Caitlin Rose. Joe also taught high-risk students as an ombudsman in Calhoun, GA.

On December 28, 2012, Joe married Susan Riley McKenzie. The couple returned to his childhood home of Lawton, as Joe wanted to be with his aging parents and get a fresh start. Joe taught algebra I and II and was the assistant soccer coach at his alma mater, Eisenhower High School. Joe also sponsored the military child club, which offered military children tutoring and counseling. Only an Army brat like Joe could appreciate the trauma of constantly changing schools. Lastly, Joe was highly involved in Blessed Sacrament Catholic Church and the Knights of Columbus, in which he achieved the rank of 4th degree (Knighthood).

Coach Hernandez, one of Joe’s fellow teachers at Eisenhower, remembers him this way: “He was one of those guys whose memory you hold in your heart forever. We started coaching together in 2014, and, since then, we have become family. He was not just a coach, he was a friend, a confidant, and sometimes the team psychologist. Most importantly, he was like a father to all these kids and me. We will remember him for his great sense of humor and the history lessons he gave us before, during, and after practices. He always wore his cowboy boots to soccer practice and his football cleats to every match. As a Catholic, Joe prayed for the team before every match, a tradition still alive today. Our soccer players and staff always wear an armband emblazoned with Coach McKenzie’s name.”

Sadly, Joe passed away on January 6, 2021 from COVID-19 complications and was buried with military honors at Fort Sill National Cemetery.

Alas, how will we remember Joe McKenzie? Susan’s recent account may give us the answer. As she was visiting Joe at his gravesite on the second anniversary of his passing, she received an unexpected text message from Coach Hernandez. Coach wanted to let Susan know that a couple of folks planned to visit Joe’s gravesite that afternoon. At 3:30pm sharp, the first car came, then another, then clusters, and then still more. Through her tears, Susan counted no fewer than 16 cars filled with the young men Joe had coached and taught at Eisenhower High. A few only knew the legend of Coach McKenzie but still came. As they all prayed at Joe’s gravesite, Susan witnessed the living legacy Joe left in his community. “What wonderful and decent young people these are,” she thought.

Joe, we are blessed to witness in real-time how your students, team, coworkers, friends, and family are growing into such fine people. They will have families, and their families will have families. Today, we witness the first ranks of a cadre of untold thousands who will radiate Coach McKenzie to everyone they meet. Yes, the legacy of Joe McKenzie—an honorable man, a wonderful person, and a warrior who was always eager to assist others—will live on through the example you set. Be Thou at Peace, Brother.