Donna Kennedy passed away peacefully in her home on November 5, 2023. She was the daughter of William Bishop, a Vaudeville tap dancer, and Ivy Bishop, manager at the Boeing Plant in Seattle Washington.

She and her siblings were raised by their mother, a strong woman in her own right. They grew up in a suburb of Seattle and enjoyed a home next to Lake Washington, one of her favorite places to be throughout Donna's life. She always wanted to teach and set directly to achieve her goals. After graduating high school, she enrolled in Antioch College where she earned her education degree. Her first job was in Packwood, Washington in a one room schoolhouse; but she had bigger ideas!

She was enlisted into the Department of Defense as a teacher and was soon on her way by boat to France. She so enjoyed traveling and took every advantage to explore Europe. It was in France where she met her soon to be husband, Bruce Kennedy, a young officer at the local Air Force base. Although she loved teaching, she left her profession to dedicate her life to starting and raising a family.  Together, they traveled much, as the Air Force took them throughout Europe, where the twins, David and Douglas were born in Bitburg Germany. They stayed there for a while before being transferred back to the states. After a short stint in the US, they returned to Germany where their daughter Katherine was born in Wiesbaden.   They returned to the United State, to Louisiana, where they started traveling and camping and fishing with close family; and had many adventures in Galveston, Florida and other destinations.

Donna and her family were transferred to Langley AFB in 1970; and she quickly got to work in organizations devoted to service. She was a cub scout den mother, girl scout leader, a member of the Officers Wives Club and several other volunteer positions. This was one trait that she passed on to her children. After her children got older, she yearned to get back to teaching, first by substituting. She eventually was hired as the reading teacher at Samuel P. Langley Elementary where she found her place. She eventually returned to school herself at ODU where she earned her master's degree as a reading specialist; and went on to earn the Virginia Reading Specialist of the Year!

Even after retiring, Donna continued to give back through volunteering for the Adult Literacy Program at the VA Hospital and ran a tutoring program through her church.

Donna was the type of person people gravitated to for her honesty and giving soul. She was truly an amazing person and will be missed by many, especially her children. She is survived by her older sister Beverly Denton, her children, son, David and his wife, Merry; son, Douglas and daughter, Katherine and her husband, Jimmy; six grandchildren, ten great-grandchildren and two great-great grandchildren.

The family wishes to express their eternal gratitude to Donna's daughter-in-law, Merry Kennedy and her son-in-law, Jimmy Freeman for their unwavering care and devotion to Mom; to Donna's best friend, Josette Loviner for her love and support; to caregivers Janet Pyron, Bonnie Willison and Audra Joyner for their compassionate care; and to Riverside Hospice for their professionalism and kindness.

There will be a viewing held from 5 – 7 PM on Thursday, November 9, 2023, at R. Hayden Smith Funeral Home, 245 S Armistead Ave, Hampton. A Celebration of Life will be held at 11 AM on Saturday, November 11th at Wesley United Methodist Church, 2510 N Armistead Ave Hampton. The family invites you all to come and celebrate an amazing life and beautiful soul.