Rev. William Bean Kennedy

BLACK MOUNTAIN, NC-- Rev. Dr. William Bean Kennedy, born on October 18, 1926 in Spartanburg, died at home in Black Mountain, NC on October 12, 2006. Will is survived by his wife, Frances Harris Kennedy; children, Katharine, Billy, Jane and Emily; and ten grandchildren. Will is also survived by a brother J. Whitner Kennedy and his wife Aileen. He was preceded in death by his parents, Dr. Leland McDuffie and Elizabeth Bean Kennedy; and by siblings Katharine Ferguson, L. McD. Kennedy, Jr., and Jane Crosswell.All three Kennedy sons were ordained Presbyterian ministers, and Jane Kennedy Crosswells husband was also a Presbyterian minister. Katharine Ferguson was a church organist for more than 40 years.Will graduated from Spartanburg High School in 1943. He served in the US Navy from 1945-46. He taught at Spartanburg High School in 1948 and at Emory University at Oxford, GA from 1949-51. Will earned a BA at Wofford College 47, MA at Duke University 48, BD at Union Theological Seminary in Richmond 54 and was awarded the Walter W. Moore graduate study fellowship. He was ordained to the ministry of the Presbyterian Church PCUS in a joint worship service in the First Presbyterian Church of Spartanburg, along with his brother, Whit, in 1954. Dr. Kennedy earned a PhD at Yale University 57 and received honorary degrees from Wofford College in 1970 and from the Jewish Theological Seminary of America in 1995.Will was professor of Christian Education at Union Theological Seminary in Richmond from 1957-1965. He served as Secretary of Education of the Presbyterian Church PCUS from 1965-69. Will was the first Director of the Office of Education of the World Council of Churches in Geneva, Switzerland from 1969-75. He was director of the Atlanta Association of International Education until 1979, then professor at Union Theological Seminary-NYC from 1979-94. After retiring, Will served as Alderman and then Mayor of Black Mountain from 1997-2006.A memorial service will be held at 3:00 PM on Saturday, October 28, 2006 in the Black Mountain Presbyterian Church. Memorial donations can be sent to Black Mountain Center for the Arts, 225 West State Street, Black Mountain, NC 28711; or Union Theological Seminary-NYC, 3041 Broadway, New York, NY 10027-5792. Contact: kfkennedy9@gmail.com.Paid Funeral Notice