Elizabeth 'Bessie' Kennedy

Elizabeth (Bessie) Kennedy died on Wednesday, April 12, 2017 in Providence, Rhode Island. At 103+, she had lived on Park Avenue in Hamden (Spring Glen), CT for more than three-quarters of a century. She was the wife of the late Frank L. Kennedy and the daughter of the late Paul and Barbara Budvid Tautvid and daughter-in-law of the late Anne Kennedy. She lived her life, always open to the changing world around her, marveling at technology, acknowledging the interweaving of past history into present life, whether it was personal or political as well as reading a daily newspaper until the very end of her life. She valued connections to the past and maintained relations in her immediate, every day life. She is survived by her daughter, Barbara Kennedy Roney and her husband, John Marshall Roney of Providence, RI, a granddaughter, Kristina Whitney Lowell and her husband Greg Lowell, and three great grand-children: Greta Kennedy Lowell, Sylvie Noonan Lowell, and Harrison James Lowell, all of Chevy Chase, MD. She is also survived by her niece Carol Roberts and her husband, David, nieces Ruth Ann Knowles, Nancy Sansevieri and Suzanne Kennedy as well as by her nephews Chris Tautvid and his wife April, Harold (Hap) Kennedy and his wife Maureen. She was predeceased by her sisters, Anne and Pauline Tautvid, Mary Papuga and her husband Leslie, brother Charles Tautvid and his wife, Gertrude and their son, Chapman Tautvid. Her brother-in-law Raymond Kennedy and his wife Ruth, as well as her brother-in-law Harold Kennedy also predeceased her. She is survived by 5 grandnieces and 2 great great-grand nephews. She leaves behind a street filled with kind neighbors and friends to whom her family is grateful; they are thankful as well to Lida Schotkevich. Bessie is also survived by memories of wonderful gardens, light snow falling, and any slow moving breeze. She worked until her retirement at the Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station in New Haven, Ct in the Department of Entomology where she focused on and was always curious about the lives of gypsy moths and fruit flies. She also worked in the Soils Department of the same institution, helping everyday gardeners and farmers balance their soils in order to produce plants of beauty and usefulness. Upon retirement, she was an assistant in the kindergarten at Saint Rita's School, marveling at the creativity and curiosity of children stepping out into their slightly larger world. Throughout her life, she was an avid reader, passing along books she had read as a child to her own daughter. She was endlessly curious, fiercely independent and somewhat reticent about her accomplishments; she was good humored, gentle and smiling until the very last moment of her life. She died on April 12, 2017. More importantly, she lived for 103 years with dignity and grace. A Mass of Christian Burial and Celebration of her life will be held at The Church of Saint Rita, 1640 Whitney Ave, Hamden, at 10:00 AM on Saturday, April 22, 2017. Funeral will depart from Beecher & Bennett Funeral Home, 2300 Whitney Ave, Hamden at 9:30 AM. Burial will take place at Saint Lawrence Cemetery, West Haven, CT. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made in her name to The Connecticut Agricultural Experiment Station, 123 Huntington Street, New Haven, CT 06511 or the Philip Hulitar Hospice Center, 1085 North Main Street, Providence, RI 02904.