Helen Kenney

Helen Francis “T.T.” Funderburk Kenney went to her Lord on April 13, 2017 after a brief illness at the age of 94. Born in Houma, LA on March 21, 1923, Helen was a lifelong resident of Louisiana, living in Houma and New Orleans. She was the eldest of three daughters born to Madison L. Funderburk of Natchitoches and Juanita Wallis Funderburk of Houma. Her grandfather, Hugh M. Wallis, Jr. served as mayor of Houma and later district judge. Her great-grandfather, Hugh M. Wallis, Sr. MD was also Houma’s mayor. Helen attended St. Francis Academy graduating as valedictorian in 1938. Then she went to Gulf Park Junior College for Women in Gulfport, MS and graduated with a B.A. degree from LSU in 1942. Helen was a speech major and a member of Pi Beta Phi sorority. Following college, Helen’s first job was working for the Duval Insurance Agency in Houma. Later she worked as a teller for Citizen’s National Bank. As President of the bank, her father honored her with opening the first savings account in her name– account #001. In the mid-1940’s, Helen travelled to Ecuador with her father as a member of the Delegation of the International House of New Orleans and was welcomed and honored by the mayor of Guayaquil with an official proclamation. Helen married Keith Thomas Kenney, a native of Wisconsin in 1948. They had two children, Nita Kathryn and Keith, Jr. Keith, Sr. worked in marine insurance for the oil industry. Along with the family, Helen managed and developed real estate in Terrebonne Parish, including the Broadmoor Subdivision, with the land for Broadmoor Elementary School and St. Bernadette Catholic Church donated by the family. At an early age Helen developed a love of books and reading. One of her favorite past times was to play librarian and check out her books to her sisters. In college she mastered poetry and throughout her life could quote great authors. Like her grandmother, Sylvia Briant Wallis, Helen was fluent in French and studied grammar through Codifil classes and developed a lexicon of local French phrases. She also read French literature together with her daughter’s classes in graduate school. Her interests also included modern 20th century English and American literature and criticism and she built an impressive library concentrating on these subjects. Helen served on the Terrebonne Parish Library Board and probably read most of the volumes in the collection. As  a pianist, Helen played duets with many friends – Martha Weatherall, Agnes Kenney, Frances South and Joan May. She volunteered as the pianist with Martha for the Houma Girls’ Chorus, and participated in many community performances. Following the death of her husband, Helen moved to New Orleans to be closer to the cultural life of the city. That included attending recitals at Loyola Music School, the Symphony and Opera. She travelled to Europe on numerous occasions on Opera tours and regularly attended the Opera and Chamber music festivals in Santa Fe and Glimmerglass. She had the opportunity to fly New York to Paris on the Concorde, which she described as an awesome experience. Her love of music was one of Helen’s driving forces enhanced by the second love of her life, Charles Suber, the editor of DownBeat, who introduced her to the New Orleans jazz scene. Observing a need to recirculate books casually left on the hall tables, together they organized, collected and catalogued an adult community library and reading room for their condo association.   Helen was a member of Le Petit Salon, Orleans Club and the New Orleans Museums of Art. In the 1960s, she studied painting with Millie McKnight and Dottie Billeau and was prolific with oil on canvas works. Her friendship with artists Melaine Collins and Robert Helmer was another inspiration in her life. Perhaps her most notable trait was her style – Helen was a trend setter all her life, wearing the latest fashions, shoes and accessories. Matched with a superb wit and intelligence, she was a graceful, elegant and charming woman. She provided a gentle, but strong guiding spirit to her family and friends. Preceding Helen in death are her parents and husband and two sisters, Maxine Funderburk Williams and Sylvia Funderburk Schreiner and son-in-law Raymond Cole. Surviving her are daughter Nita Kenney Cole, son Keith “Buster” Kenney and wife Jeri Oncale Kenney, grandchildren Mia Martinez of Houma, Cristin Kenney Andrews, husband Cutler Andrews of North Carolina and Patrick Kenney and wife Shari Brondum Kenney of North Carolina. Catherine Cole, Lafayette and Helen Cole Foster and husband Russell Foster of New Orleans. Great grandchildren include Zoé Martinez, Larklin and Faelan Andrews, Sullivan Kenney, Mary Grace and John Foster. Numerous nieces Madelyn Williams Landgrave, Sylvia Schreiner Wilson and Louise Schreiner Ryan; nephews Tom Schreiner, Paul Schreiner and David Williams and John Williams. Special friends Celia Houtz Kenney, Geraldine Redman and Otis Shevlin.        Honorary pallbearers will be William Bordelon, John Williams, Cutler Andrews, Patrick Kenney, Russell Foster, Frank Porretto and Elliott Roy.The family would like to thank Russell Henry, MD for his devotion and dedication. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the New Orleans Symphony or arts association of your choice. Visitation will be held at Chauvin Funeral Home in Houma, LA (5899 Hwy 311, Houma, LA 70360) on Wednesday , April 19, 2017 from 9:00AM until service time. Liturgy of the Word will start at 11:00AM at Chauvin Funeral Home and burial will follow services in Magnolia Cemetery in Houma, LA.Chauvin Funeral Home, Inc., is honored to serve the Kenney family.