Cecil F. Cunningham

SIOUX CITY -- Cecil F. Cunningham, 49, of Wichita, Kan., formerly of Sioux City, died Friday, July 9, 2010, at his residence following a brief illness with cancer.

Services will be 11 a.m. Saturday at Meyer Brothers Morningside Chapel. Burial will be in Memorial Park Cemetery. Visitation with the family will be 6 to 8 p.m. today, with a prayer service at 7 p.m., at the funeral home. Condolences may be sent online to www.meyerbroschapels.com.

Cecil was born Aug. 18, 1960, in Holden, Mo., the son of Dr. Cecil and Gloria (Balsley) Cunningham. He was baptized and confirmed at St. Paul's Lutheran Church and attended St. Paul's Lutheran School. He graduated from East High School in 1979 and then attended Morningside College for two years. He went to Western Iowa Tech Community College and received a degree in electronic communications.

Following graduation, Cecil went to work for KAKE-TV in Wichita, where he worked for 25 years. He received several awards from KAKE for his dedication to his job. He never took off for sickness until his recent illness.

In his youth, he loved to swim, build model cars and was involved in Boy Scouts. He loved visiting his grandmother in Kansas City and going to Worlds of Fun. He enjoyed fishing and rebuilding antique cars with his father. He also helped his father on many construction projects. Cecil taught himself to play the guitar and loved playing chess. He also liked animals and kids.

He will be missed by his family and friends including his mother, Gloria Cunningham of Sioux City; a brother, Scott Cunningham of Sioux City; two sisters, Sheryl Cochnauer of Joplin, Mo., and Laura Griffin and her husband, Fred of Sioux City; five nephews, Aaron and Steven Cunningham, David Griffin, Lucas Cunningham and Joshua Cochnauer; three nieces, Holly, Latasha and Aislinn Cunningham; and his good friends in Wichita, Allyn Kouri, Eric Galiton and Todd Cooper.

He was preceded in death by his father, Dr. Cecil Cunningham; and maternal and paternal grandparents.

Pallbearers will be Scott and Aaron Cunningham and Fred Griffin.