Theodore William "Ted" Groene

Theodore "Ted" William Groene, age 92, of Louisville, Kentucky, passed away peacefully on January 22, 2026, surrounded by his family. He was born April 14, 1933, to Arthur and Margaret Groene (nee Ebner). Ted was a loving husband, father and grandfather who encouraged his children and grandchildren to try their wings. He loved singing, golfing, hiking, jogging, volleyball and roller skating. Even more, he loved empowering others through teaching and embraced the value of lifelong friendships. His love of singing began as a choirboy; as a tenor, he sang with choral groups, choirs and in musicals throughout his entire life.

He graduated from Elder High School in Cincinnati, Ohio. After graduating from the University of Cincinnati School of Business in 1956 with a Bachelor of Science in Industrial Management, he joined General Electric's Management Program, working first in Cincinnati, Ohio, and later in Louisville, Kentucky, where he spent the remainder of his 33 year career.

Inspired by its mission of living out our faith and social justice, he was a founding member of Epiphany Catholic Church, where he naturally joined the choir. For years after his retirement in 1989, he could be found working every Wednesday with Epiphany's carpentry finishing crew at Habitat for Humanity. In 1996, as a member of Epiphany's Latino Concerns Ministry, he joined others to build temporary housing for migrant workers on the grounds of Epiphany, later transported to provide shelter for farmworkers in Lebanon, Kentucky. For several years, Ted traveled with busloads of fellow parishioners to the School of Americas, at Fort Benning, Georgia, to protest the training of Central and South American militaries known for persecuting their own populations. In 1998, Ted joined a fact-finding trip led by the Sisters of Loretta to Chiapas, Mexico; the mission was to bear witness to the Mexican military using US government arms to terrorize its indigenous people, and report back to Congress.

He loved "tent camping" in Kentucky, out west, up north and back east in national parks with his family, while later expanding his travel to Australia, Central America, South America and Europe. He had a contagious sense of adventure and an enthusiasm for solving problems if things went awry.

He was preceded in death by his parents, Arthur and Margaret Groene; his brother, Roger Groene and his sister-in-law, Vivian. He is survived by his beloved wife, Martha and children: Jeanne Marie Groene, Therese Graves (Ben), John Groene (Nicole Bartecki) and Karen Groene (Dave Ojeda); grandchildren, Danielle, Rebecca, Sarah, Addison, Xander, Quinn and Wyatt.

The family would like to express their sincere gratitude for the loving care given by Ahmod O. Leigh, Yaneisy Cruz Ruiz and the rest of the Westport Health Campus staff. Further thanks to Barbara Millhollen and the YMCA Parkinson's Community for inspiring the exercise warrior in Ted. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions in remembrance of Ted may be made to Habitat for Humanity of Metro Louisville.

Visitation from 9:00 am to 11:00 am followed by a funeral Mass at 11:00 on Saturday, January 31, 2026, at Epiphany Catholic Church, 914 Old Harrods Creek Road, Louisville, KY 40223.