Founder of KEI Passes Away at Age 80
KEI- Milwaukee, WI
Sally Kujawa, founder of KEI, passed away on the morning of March 30th, 2022 at the age of 80. Sally was married to Ron Kujawa for 61 years and was the mother to four children. She said the key to their successful marriage and working relationship was their ability to complement each other: “Ron is the thinker and I am the doer.” Sally and Ron founded KEI, as we know it, in 1964 and remained leaders of the company for four decades before passing on ownership to their son, Chris.
The Kujawa Family has evolved KEI over many decades – starting out as a feed and seed store in the 1920s, moving into beer distribution and, eventually becoming a leader in landscape management services.
Sally and Ron organically transitioned into the landscape business after a Rotary club meeting presented the opportunity to take over the clean-up work after Milwaukee’s electric company installed underground power lines throughout the city. Sally, who valued integrity above all else, used her talents of articulation, budgeting, analysis, and management to lead the company in her role as CFO.
Throughout Sally’s life, she was very vocal about her love for everyone, and everything, TEAM ORANGE! She felt immense pride whenever she saw an orange truck driving down the street. Always KEI’s biggest cheerleader, she was not shy to tell people about the role KEI, and it’s wonderful team members, played in making Milwaukee a beautiful city to live and visit. We honor all of the contributions and sacrifices that Sally made over her lifetime to build KEI into the great company it is today. She will be greatly missed.
