Wife, young children grieving after father of 7 unexpectedly dies

IDAHO FALLS — Family and friends of an Idaho Falls man who unexpectedly died Wednesday are remembering his life and hoping to raise money for his wife and seven children he left behind.

Kenny Chaffin, 44, was the owner of Lucky Bail Bonds and the main source of income for his family. With no life insurance, family members are trying to find ways to sustain the household.

“Everyone is kind of scrambling and trying to figure out what is going to happen with everything,” Chaffin’s sister-in-law, Lindsay Browning, tells EastIdahoNews.com.

Chaffin and his wife, Julissa, have children ranging in age from an 11-month-old boy to two kids in their 20’s. They also have a young granddaughter.

“The amount of people that this has affected is countless. He’s pretty well known in the community and really loved,” Browning says.

Browning said Chaffin was an extreme outdoorsman, who loved being active and was great in his profession. He also worked side jobs as a security guard at concerts.

“He was always outside. He loved nature and everything about it. He loved birds. He loved fishing, rafting, kayaks, snowmobiles and motorcycles. Those were like his prized possessions,” Browning says. “He was the happiest person and always there for you and everybody. He loved his family and he was always taking care of all of his family members.”

Browning started a GoFundMe page for the family to help with expenses.

“If all you can do is $20, that will buy diapers for a month,” Browning says. “We as a family are helping but it makes such a huge difference if we could get the community to help too.”

Chaffin’s funeral will be held at 11 a.m. Wednesday, Oct. 25, at the South Point LDS church on 1291 West 6500 South in Idaho Falls. The family will visit with friends Tuesday from 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. at Wood Funeral Home 273 N. Ridge Ave.