Our planet lost a gentle intellectual giant on January 9, 2016, with Darin's death. He entered this life on February 21, 1968, in Lincoln, NE. His formative years were spent in Lincoln as well as Verona, WI. After finishing high school in 1986 as salutatorian, he completed BS and MS degrees in Engineering Mechanics at the University of Wisconsin in Madison. This education led to his first job as a real-life rocket scientist. The foray into space-related design included stints working in microgravity and a patent in the area of rocketry cryogenics. His penchant for computers and software development drew him into the world of software technology with self-taught credentials in the top programming languages. This pursuit initially led him to Brazil where he designed a program to optimize the placement of cell-phone towers for the South American telecom industry. He supported this career path with brief progress on a PhD in computer science at Georgia Tech in Atlanta, GA. He eventually ended up in Portland, OR, so as to be closer to his family and the booming technology field within the ‘silicon forest’ of Oregon. While in Portland he participated in web-commerce development for multiple companies as a senior software developer and application engineer. He will be remembered as a voracious reader of science fiction, a master of trivia competitions, an attentive cook, a patient colleague, a loving son/brother/partner, and a mischievous uncle. His mind was his tool and he taught us to challenge our own intellectual limits, even if through trivial pursuit. He is survived by his son Andrew Keesey, his partner Olga Howell, his mother, Mary K. Kohles-Baker (William Buck Baker), his father, Derald Kohles (Reba Schafer), his older brother Sean S. Kohles (Beky Kohles) along with his nephews Orion and Thoreau Kohles, as well as many aunts, uncles, and cousins. Donations in his name can be made to the Portland Rescue Mission or the Cleveland High School (Oregon) Boys Soccer team.
Listed skills include Web Applications, Integration, Flex, Software Development, and 46 others.