Patricia E. Kendall

1928 - 2019

FORT MYERS, Florida - Patricia E. Kendall, formerly of Athens, passed away in her home in Fort Myers, Florida on July 15, 2019.
Tish was born in Trenton, New Jersey on Feb. 11, 1928, the youngest of four daughters of the Rev. Dr. Peter K. and Helen W. Emmons.
She grew up in Scranton, Pennsylvania and was a 1944 graduate of Country Day School there. She graduated from Grove City College (Pennsylvania) in 1948, at the age of 20.
Tish was married to Ben Kendall on Sept. 11, 1948 and their loving marriage endured for 66 years until Ben's death in 2015. Together they raised three daughters and a son and were later blessed with five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
The family moved to Athens in 1960 when Ben accepted a faculty position at Ohio University. After staying home to raise her children while they were young, Tish taught French at Athens High School and other schools in the area in the 1960s and '70s.
After retiring from teaching, she devoted her time to various charitable works, both in Athens and in Vero Beach, Florida, where she and Ben lived following his own retirement in 1993 until they moved to Fort Myers in 2009 in order to be closer to their children and grandchildren.
She served as a deacon of First Presbyterian Church of Athens and Financial Secretary of First Presbyterian Church of Vero Beach, and was involved in many church activities in both locations. She volunteered to help homebound and visually disabled individuals and was a tutor in literacy programs for both children and adults. She also officiated high school volleyball matches for several years while still in Ohio and served as a board member and treasurer of her condominium association in Vero Beach.
Tish was a woman of many talents and interests. She won several local golf championships and was a talented seamstress as well as a maker of beautiful crafts. She was a dedicated correspondent to family and friends and enjoyed reading, spectator sports and traveling, especially to spend time with those family members and friends.
In addition to her husband, parents and sisters, Tish was preceded in death by her eldest daughter, Kristin Kendall Harrison.
She is survived by her daughters, Barbara Chapin and Nancy Kendall; son and daughter-in-law, Ken and Lisa Kendall; grandchildren, Rachael (Dan) Lingle, Julie (Tim) Austin, Meghan Harrison, Lily Kendall and Tommy Kendall; and great-grandchildren, Oscar, Etta and Eliza Austin, and Ruby and Annie Lingle; as well as many nieces, nephews, extended family members and dear friends.
A memorial service will be held Saturday, Aug. 17, 2019 at 11 a.m. at Covenant Presbyterian Church in Fort Myers. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations be made in Tish's memory to Hope Hospice.
Friends and family members are welcome to leave messages on her electronic guestbook at www.fortmyersmemorial.com.