Penelope Joan Duhring

Penelope Joan Duhring passed away February 29, 2024, at home in Round Hill, VA. She was 90

years old. She was affectionately known as "Penny" and "Granny" to her family and friends.

Penny was born on January 28, 1934, in Bermuda. She was one of two children born to Thomas

Christopher Smith and Joan Isabel (Martin) Smith.

Penny was well-traveled at a young age flying alone to attend Upper Chine boarding school in

England and to visit the United States as a teenager. She attended McGill University in Montreal,

Canada where she earned a degree in Sociology and History. After college, she worked as a typist

for the Bermuda News Bureau and the University of Pennsylvania News Bureau. She married John

Lewis (Jack) Duhring in 1956. They raised three children while living in Kentucky and briefly in

Hawaii while Jack served as a physician in the US Army. Penny and Jack also lived in Toledo, OH

and Melbourne, FL. Her husband Jack passed away in 1995. She moved to Virginia in 2002 to

remain close to her family.

Penny was admired throughout her long life for being highly intuitive, kind, and well-intentioned

with a relentless desire to help others. She served in numerous volunteer roles wherever she

lived. She helped her physician husband deliver care to underserved communities in remote

locations of Hawaii and Appalachia. She volunteered as a swim team parent, Boy and Girl scout

assistant leader, school library assistant, hospital gift shop and patient services volunteer, and

she delivered Meals on Wheels in Florida and Virginia. She also served in many volunteer church

roles. Her most recent volunteer positions included the Purcellville Public Library and the Blue

Ridge Hospice Thrift Shop where she helped manage the original Book Nook and helped transition

the book collection to a new location. Her knowledge of history and passion for reading served

her well as she sorted and organized an endless stream of used books to put them back on the

shelf for readers of all ages. She was recognized as the 2013 Blue Ridge Hospice Thrift Shop

Volunteer of the Year for her contributions to the community.

Penny also enjoyed being outdoors, gardening, feeding backyard birds, knitting, and spending time

surrounded by her family who admired and loved her dearly.

She is survived by her children Christopher Duhring (Terry), Susan Duhring, and Karen Duhring

(Dan Sennett), her four grandchildren William Duhring (Meghan O'Donoghue), John Duhring

(Laura), Elizabeth Rein (Kevin), and Catherine Boatright (Max), five great-grandchildren, her brother

Christopher Smith (Alison Rice) of Toronto, Canada, plus two nephews and two nieces.

A celebration of her life will be held at Hall Funeral Home, Purcellville, VA on Wednesday, March

13, 2024, at 11am. Memorial donations may be made to Blue Ridge Hospice or a library of your

choice. Penelope Joan Duhring