Grace Gertrude “Trudy” Kenney

Trudy Kenney, age 95, slipped peacefully away from her home in Yorktown to her heavenly Father on December 4, 2016.
Trudy was born in Smock, PA, on March 22, 1921, the oldest of six children. She married Curt Kenney in 1947 and subsequently had 3 children – Pam, Sue, and Tom.
As a young girl Trudy had a tender heart for immigrant classmates in their coal mining town of Smock. From the day she married, Trudy’s gift of hospitality made a welcoming home for Curt and the children, relatives, and others. She and Curt served their churches and communities wherever National Cash Register assignments moved them – Uniontown and Latrobe (PA), Burlington (IA), Atlanta, and Norfolk. Trudy was passionate about serving international students and Urban Discovery Ministries of Norfolk– later gaining certification to teach urban students with learning disabilities. In 1974 Curt took early retirement in order to serve college students with Intervarsity Christian Fellowship, traveling the Southeast from their home in Greensboro, NC, for ten years. Younger staffers knew Trudy as a good listener and wise counselor. Her six grandchildren and six great grandchildren knew her as their sweet “Lana,” who baked unrivaled macaroni and cheese and warmed their winter pj’s in the oven. She will be missed by friends around the world who found hearty meals and conversation at her table.
Trudy was predeceased by Curt and two brothers, Herman and Harold Bowman. She is survived by siblings Evelyn Tucker, Orrin (Mary Alice) Bowman, and Cliff (Margaret) Bowman; children Pam (Milton) Lord, Sue Spidell, and Tom (Mabel) Kenney, six grandchildren, and six great grandchildren.
A celebration of her life will be held Friday, December 30, 2016, 1 pm, at Peninsula Community Chapel, 4209 Big Bethel Road, Yorktown, VA 23693 (757-867-8530). Memorials may honor Trudy’s heart for urban students, with gifts to URBAN DISCOVERY MINISTRIES, P.O. Box 6381, Norfolk, VA 23508. (757.622.1665) udm@urbandiscovery.org