James Frederick Kubik

J. Fred Kubik, 89, passed away on January 4, 2020 in the same place he was born, Wesley Hospital in Wichita Kansas. J. graduated from Wichita North High School in 1948. He went on to the University of Kansas where he received a BS in Accounting in 1952, a law degree and admittance to the Kansas Bar in 1954.  Only a few months later, on July 3, he married his wife of 65 years, Christine Wiley. After law school, J. served two years in the military, including one year in Japan investigating claims against the U.S. Army.  J. spent over 40 years working as a CPA, first for F.B. Kubik and Company (1956 – 1991) and for Baird, Kurtz and Dobson (1991 – 2002).  During his time as an accountant, he was appointed a member of the tax division of the American Institute of CPAs and served as president of the Kansas Society of CPAs.  In 1995, J. was awarded the Arthur J. Dixon Memorial Award, the accounting profession’s highest award for service in the area of taxation.  In 1996, Senator Bob Dole appointed J. to a select commission whose work resulted in the IRS Restructuring and Reform Act of 1998, for which J. participated in President Clinton’s signing ceremony.  Previously, J. worked on tax reform legislation for the Carter Administration. J. finished his distinguished career with an appointment by the governor to the Kansas Court of Tax Appeals, serving from 2005 to 2012. J. was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of Wichita from the time of his confirmation in 1942. He served multiple terms on the Board of Elders and was chairman of the Board of Trustees. On the national level, J. served on the General Assembly of the United Presbyterian Church from 1981 to 1989, where he was Chair of the Finance Committee during the Presbyterian Church’s reunification.  Following his service on the General Assembly, J. served on the board of the Louisville Presbyterian Seminary from 1989 to 2012 where he was named as a lifetime member of the Board of Trustees. J. gave tirelessly to the Wichita community, including 45 years on the YMCA Board of Directors, 9 years as Chairman of the Board of Trustees of the Presbyterian Manors, board member of the Wichita Area Chamber of Commerce, treasurer for Wichita Music Theater and many years as an active member of the Rotary Club. J. was an avid outdoorsman and expert fly fisherman. Family vacations were spent backpacking in the Rockies with carefully planned freeze dried meals, fishing and loud Yahtzee games each night. J. was devoted to family. He is preceded in death by his parents, Frederick and Clarice Kubik. Survived by his wife, Christine Kubik; daughters, Kathy (Bruce) Froehlich, Susan (David) Sutherland, Anne (Fred) Sheehy; grandchildren, Lauren, Cameron, Grace, Cooper, Josh and Kylie and sister, Kathryn Dougherty (Alan) of Mission Viejo, CA. J.’s memorial service will be at 10:30 am, Saturday, January 11, 2020, at First Presbyterian Church of Wichita, 525 N. Broadway Ave. Memorials have been established with: First Presbyterian Wichita Foundation, Inc., 525 N. Broadway Ave., Wichita, KS, 67214 (https://firstchurchwichita.org/about/foundation) Greater Wichita YMCA c/o Hillary Alexander, 402 N. Market St., 2nd Floor, Wichita, KS 67202 (https://ymcawichita.org/kubik) Downing & Lahey Mortuary - East Chapel.