Memorial service for Deputy Kenneth ‘KC’ Merck, a married father of 5, drew more than 350 people on Monday to The Expo

Some 350 family, friends and law enforcement colleagues gathered Monday for a memorial service honoring a fallen Jackson County Sheriff’s Office corrections deputy, renowned chainsaw carver, avid gold miner, outdoorsman and father of five.

Deputy Kenneth “KC” Merck died at his home June 17, 2025, following a sudden medical event. 

JCSO officials provided a full honors active-duty death memorial service and law enforcement escort for family members during the services held at the Jackson County Expo.

Law enforcement agencies from around the state were in attendance for the service, which was livestreamed to social media and included a bell-ringing ceremony, honor guard presentation and presentation of the American flag by Sheriff Nate Sickler to Merck’s family.

Born July 11, 1976, Merck was a 1994 graduate of Eagle Point High School and lived in Trail with his wife and five children.

One of the longest-tenured deputies of the sheriff’s office — beginning at the JCSO Corrections Bureau in 2007 — Merck mentored countless employees who came to work for the department and was known for his sense of humor, work ethic and “larger than life” personality, sheriff’s office officials said.
While serious and gruff on the surface, close friends remembered a man with a long list of interests, from gold panning and wood carving — some of his elaborate creations were on display during Monday’s memorial — to his close bonds with family and friends.
Sheriff’s officials said the 48-year-old’s “presence on shift was unmistakable,” and that he “commanded respect not through authority, but by being authentic, consistent and wholly himself.”

JCSO Deputy Mike Hammond said the sudden absence of his friend of nearly two decades had been sobering but that family and friends agreed that Merck would have chuckled, wanting “no part of” any memorial or other formalities.

“To me, all I can do is sit there and grin and laugh and say, ‘That’s just beautiful.’ Even though he’d be pissed, he’d also appreciate it,” Hammond said.

Hammond said Merck could often be misunderstood as gruff or serious, “but if you knew him, you knew he was anything but.”

“He might be a little more gruff at work than he was during off hours, but he was a very caring person. He and I were buddies. We knew how to push each other’s buttons, set each other off. Nobody could make me laugh like Merck,” Hammond said.

“He’d do favors for people, so I’d tease him, call him a softy. He’d tell me, ‘shut up Hammond!’”

Hammond said Merck was “a hard worker, always doing something, always going,” but that when he talked about his family and his dogs, “he would soften up and laugh and show everyone pictures.”

Hammond added, “He was a tough-looking guy, but he was the epitome of, ‘Don’t judge a book by the cover.’”

Melissa Di Costanzo, corrections operations lieutenant for the sheriff’s office, remembered her late friend as a reliable, protective comrade.

“He was a very confident person, a protector. You always felt comfortable with Merck,” she said.

“I think he loved this job because he made really good friends and his friends here felt more like family.”

Di Costanzo, who began working with Merck and a handful of other “long timers” in 2006, said, “Even though we’re here in this dismal place … working with Merck and those same guys, it just made everything right. You felt like you had that family, that connection. … ‘Merck was just a really great, solid dude, and somebody anybody could count on at any time.”

Goebel’s Country Store owner Laura Goebel marveled at the amount of carvings Merck delivered to her Shady Cove store, consigned under his Elk Creek Carvings brand, a top seller at the roadside shop.

“We had a great time kind of just watching him work his magic with his carvings, which were just incredible,” Goebel told the Rogue Valley Times.

“The best part was that you could tell he really enjoyed it. He would come in, his whole truck would be loaded with carvings, and I would think, ‘Oh my god, when do you have time for all this?’”

Sickler said Monday’s services were a somber occasion but a fitting tribute for the late deputy. Sickler described Merck as a down-to-earth, family-oriented man.

“He was known for his candor. You always knew where you stood with Merck, but he’d tell you how he felt and that was it, then everything was good,” Sickler told the Times on Monday, noting that Merck had left a big hole in the department and was “truly going to be missed.”

Wife Christa Merck, in a written statement, said that her family was “heartbroken beyond words” at the loss of the father and her husband since 2011.

“We have lost our rock, our teacher, our guide, and the glue that held us all together. As a wife, I’ve lost my soulmate,” the statement read. “The kind of love we shared is something I can only hope everyone is lucky enough to experience in their lifetime. I was blessed with 16 incredible years by his side, years filled with laughter, passion, partnership, and deep connection.

“KC was one of those rare souls who could do just about anything. He was endlessly talented, whether it was gold mining, wood carving, rebuilding engines, or perfecting bodywork on cars, he approached everything he touched with creativity, precision, and pride,” his wife wrote. “He was larger than life, full of heart, and he loved with everything he had. There will never be another KC. 

“The space he’s left in our lives is immeasurable, and words will never be enough to fill it. We miss him with every breath.”
Merck is survived by his wife, five children — Shayna, Haley, Camryn, Caleb, and Caden — as well as his father, sister and extended family.

Law enforcement agencies in attendance and serving on the honor guard during Monday’s memorial came from around the region and from all over the state. A benefit site has been set up through the Oregon Fraternal Order of Police Foundation website.

An online tribute was posted to the Jackson County Sheriff’s Office Facebook page.

Reach reporter Buffy Pollock at 458-488-2029 or buffy.pollock@rv-times.com. Follow her on Twitter @orwritergal.