(News article) A man whose career as a Toledo firefighter spanned three decades, Donald D. Kenney died in St. Luke's Hospital, Maumee, on Tuesday, two days before his 79th birthday. He had heart surgery in December, but developed pneumonia and other complications, said his son, Don, Jr., a Toledo police deputy chief.
Mr. Kenney, of South Toledo, took on two post-retirement roles related to his fire department experience. In 1992, then-Gov. George Voinovich appointed him to a seat on the Workers' Compensation Regional Board of Review in Toledo. He succeeded Karen Gillmor, who launched a successful Ohio Senate campaign.
Later, he was an investigator for the state fire marshal office. He left that position by the late 1990s, his son said.
He was a Marine Corps veteran working for the former Libbey-Owens-Ford Co. when he decided to take the test to become a Toledo firefighter.
"He said it was something he'd always been interested in," his son said.
Mr. Kenney began his new career on Dec. 1, 1961.
He started at the former Station 12, Summit and Cleveland streets, said Robert Schwanzl, a retired Toledo assistant fire chief. He next was assigned to Station 6 in East Toledo, followed by stints at Station 24 in Point Place; the former Station 9 on Broadway near Orchard Avenue, and the former Station 15 on Fearing Boulevard near Western Avenue. He also was assigned to the rescue squad at Station 1 on Huron and Orange streets.
"He'd come home and tell us about the fires he [fought]," his son said. There were dangers -- the collapse of a flame-weakened roof. There were heroics -- rescues from burning buildings; the time he helped a pregnant woman deliver her baby in a taxicab.
"When you're a kid, you don't pay much attention," his son said.
Of the tragic, Mr. Kenney came to realize "you're not God and you can only do what you can do," his son said. "Everybody, policemen, firemen -- a lot of times you can make a difference. At the end of the day, you have to let go of it."
Yet the job remained fulfilling, and Mr. Kenney enjoyed going in.
"That says a lot," the younger Mr. Kenney said.
Mr. Kenney's example inspired his son to become a police officer. Chief Kenney's daughter, Kellie, just became a Toledo police officer; his son, Erik, is a Toledo police sergeant, and his daughter-in-law Becky is a detective.
Mr. Kenney retired in 1990, closing his career as an inspector in the fire prevention bureau.
"He was a pretty dedicated inspector," said Mr. Schwanzl, who oversaw the bureau. "He was an all-business, no nonsense type of individual. He did a very good job in fire inspection, and I always wished we had more like him."
Mr. Kenney was a former vice president of Firefighters' Local 92 and was on the executive board. Until his illness, he was a regular at an every Thursday breakfast gathering of retired firefighters.
He was a passionate fan of the Detroit Tigers and the Detroit Lions. He and his wife, Rose, liked to visit Florida, and he liked to fish when they rented a cottage in the Irish Hills.
"He was tough, no doubt about it," his son said -- except when he was with his great-grandchildren: "Every time they came over, he had a twinkle in his eye."
A graduate of Woodward High School, he was born May 31, 1933, to Margaret and Owen Kenney and grew up in North Toledo.
He was formerly married to Nancy Kott Leister.
Surviving are his wife, Rose Kenney, whom he married Aug. 23, 1978; sons, Don, Jr., Dave, Ron, and Brian Kenney; stepdaughter, Tammy Diaz; stepson, Rusty Krotzer; sisters, Carole McGee and Geralyn Herling; six grandchildren, and six great-grandchildren.
Visitation will be from 2 to 8 p.m. today in the Walter Funeral Home, with a Last Alarm service at 7 p.m. Funeral services will be at 10 a.m. Saturday in the mortuary.
The family suggests tributes to
, Memphis, or the
.
Contact Blade staff writer Mark Zaborney at: mzaborney@theblade.com or 419-724-6182.
Published in Toledo Blade on June 1, 2012
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