Obituary of Mary V.V. Kenney

Mrs. Mary V.V. Kenney, 78, of Short Hills died on Saturday, Aug. 25, 2007, at St. Vincents Nursing Home in Cedar Grove. Relatives and friends are invited to attend the Funeral Mass at St. Rose Lima Church, 50 Short Hills Ave., Short Hills, on Wednesday, Aug. 29, at 10 a.m. Interment will be at St. Rose of Lima Cemetery, Short Hills. Visitation will be held at the Jacob A. Holle Funeral Home, 2122 Milburn Ave., Maplewood, on Tuesday from 2 to 4 and 7 to 9 p.m. For more information or to send condolences, please visit jacobhollefuneralhome.com. Born in Dansville, N.Y., Mrs. Kenney lived in Short Hills for 47 years. She was the longtime director of music at St. Rose of Lima Church in Short Hills before retiring in 2005. She was also an organist at St. Stephens Church in Millburn and taught music at Newton College and Manhattanville College. In 1952, Mrs. Kenney was chosen by Cardinal Spellman to be the organist for the Eucharistic Congress Pilgrimage to Barcelona, Spain. She was a member of the American Guild of Organists with a degree of Catholic Choirmaster. A summa cum laude graduate of Manhattanville College, she earned her bachelors degree in music and majored in piano and organ and later earned a masters degree in musicology at New York University. She also did a year of graduate study at Villa Schifanoia in Florence, Italy. She was the beloved mother of Mary Beth Sweet, Catherine Morrison, Richard P. Kenney Jr., Terence J. Kenney and Anne Utley, and dear sister of Joan McDonnell. She is also survived by 12 grandchildren. In lieu of flowers, donations to Friends of Music at St. Stephens, 119 Main St., Millburn, N.J. 07041, would be appreciated.