Amarie Kennedy

Amarie (Amy) Kennedy was born to Alfred and Goldie Thompson in Williamson, West Virginia, on January 17, 1932. She was the oldest of seven children, and the only girl.

Amarie is survived by her husband of sixty-eight years, Berry Kennedy, five brothers, Donald, Harold, Irvin, Lloyd, and James, seventeen grandchildren, and twenty great-grandchildren.

As a child Amarie spent several years on her grandfather’s farm in Martin County, Kentucky. She and her brothers enjoyed roaming the mountain sides and exploring the caves of the area. She had pleasant memories of those days which seemed to be an enjoyable time in her life. She always loved the mountains of West Virginia and Kentucky.

Amarie’s education was in the school system in Williamson, West Virginia. She was encouraged by a Christian family to attend Kentucky Christian College in Grayson, Kentucky. She met a fellow student Berry Kennedy and on August 21, 1952, they were joined in marriage. Their married life began in a two-room log cabin on the campus of the college. On November 9, 1953, Amarie gave birth to her first-born son, Jerry Garner. Then on April 30, 1955, she gave birth to her first daughter Janet Sue. Subsequently, she gave birth to James Warren, John Mark, Joy Lynn and Jeffrey Doss.

In June 1959, Berry and Amarie and their five small children went to Rhodesia, Africa, where they engaged in missionary work for twenty years. Amarie was active in the work, organizing women’s programs, and teaching Scripture classes both in the churches and in the public school system. She was a popular, positive, and loving influence in the lives of so many. She had a heart for little children both her own and for all others. Her children were raised in Africa.

The family returned from Africa in 1979, and Berry and Amarie have continued in a local church ministry in the Orlando, Florida, area.

Amarie fought a long and brave battle with Alzheimer’s and succumbed to the disease on February 24, 2021. The family lost a precious, sweet spirit and her presence is greatly missed. In all the years of her illness including over two years of being bedfast, she never complained, but suffered in silence.

Her legacy of love lives on in the lives of her extended family. If Amarie could, she would say to each, “Prepare to come and be with me in my beautiful new home. I love you so deeply.”

Funeral services will be held Saturday, February 27, 2021, 10 am at Collison Carey Hand Funeral Home.