Dr. Dora Kennedy

Dr. Dora Funari Kennedy, of College Park, Maryland, passed away from recurrent cancer on February 1, 2009, at the Washington Adventist Hospital. She was 87. Dr. Kennedy was the beloved wife of the late Edwin Dallas Kennedy, who passed away in 2006, and mother to her surviving son, Dallas C. Kennedy of Natick, Massachusetts. Born of immigrant Italian parents on March 8, 1921, in Bellaire, Ohio, Dr. Kennedy showed outstanding ability in languages early, majoring in education and Romance languages at Ohio University in Athens and graduating in 1942. She taught high school English, Spanish, and Latin in Ohio (where she was married in 1946) and New York, then moved to the Washington area in 1951. After a stint of teaching elementary school in College Park, Dr. Kennedy was tapped in 1959 to be the first supervisor of Prince George's County's new foreign language program, her position for the next 32 years. Over this time, she raised her son; received her master's and doctoral degrees from the University of Maryland-College Park, cementing a 50-year relationship; spurred innovations in foreign language teaching; and supervised hundreds of teachers. Upon retirement, she became adjunct faculty at College Park, helping to train new teachers, until the end of 2008. She was also active in College Park community affairs and numerous professional organizations. All funeral arrangements have been entrusted to Gasch's Funeral Home, P.A., 4739 Baltimore Avenue, Hyattsville, MD 20781. The Life Celebration of Dr. Kennedy will take place Saturday, February 7, 2009, from 5-7 pm and Sunday, February 8, 2009, from 2-4 and 6-8 pm. Funeral services will be held on Monday, February 9, 2009 at 11 am, followed by burial at George Washington Cemetery in Adelphi, MD.