Kenney Earl Gray PhD

B: September 9, 1939
D: April 16, 2020

Kenney Earl Gray Ph.D. 80 passed into life eternal April 16, 2020 at home in The Woodlands, Texas. He was born September 9, 1939 at home in Itawamba County, Mississippi to Georgia Mae Mitchell Gray and Crafton Elias Gray. While attending The University of Illinois, he met Kathleen Sue Matthews whom he married December 27, 1964 in Oklahoma City and shared 55 years of marriage.

Kenney lived a life of service grounded in faith. He grew up in a Christian home with grandparents and parents who faithfully lived and openly shared their faith within the family, the church, and their rural Mississippi community. In his early teens, Kenney accepted Jesus as his Savior and was baptized in a farm pond.

Kenney followed the example of his parents to help others, care for the sick, and share food from their garden with anyone in need who passed their farm. Kenney and his father, Crafton, traveled to revival meetings in country churches where his father led the singing and Kenney played the piano. While in high school and junior college, he played the piano and sang with a male quartet on a weekly TV Christian program.

Kenney faithfully invested the gifts he was given to serve his community and his family. He developed a strong, reliable work ethic while working on the family farm, and as an FFA member, he became a fluent public speaker and a skilled group leader. He was State FFA President of Mississippi in 1957-58 and was a National FFA officer in 1959-60. He attended Itawamba Junior College and graduated from Mississippi State University in 1962 as Senior Class President.

Kenney earned a Master of Science degree in agriculture education from The University of Illinois and returned to his home state to teach vocational agriculture in Morton, Mississippi. After two years in the classroom, he served as Public Relations Director in the Vocational Technical Division of The Mississippi Department of Education. He earned his Ph.D. at The Ohio State University in Agricultural Education, and then served as Assistant to the Director of The National Center for Vocational and Technical Education at The Ohio State University.

From 1979 until retirement in 2009, Kenney worked at Sooner Distributors, the family business started by his father-in-law, Chester Matthews. His responsibilities included marketing, advertising and the sale of outdoor power equipment.

Throughout this time, Kenney served his family, his employers, his customers, and especially his church as a selfless, servant-leader. Kenney was key in starting the Royal Ambassadors program at Lane Avenue Baptist Church, sang in the choir, and actively participated in activities with his sons, Stephen and Kendall. In churches from Jackson, Mississippi, to Columbus, Ohio, to Oklahoma City and Norman, Oklahoma, to The Woodlands, Texas, he answered every call for service. Kenney served wherever needed, from greeter, to usher, to committee member, to deacon, to keeping the grounds. He was and will forever be remembered as a "servant of all." Mark 9:35

Kenney is survived by his: Wife, Kathleen; Son, Kendall Matthew Gray, wife Pauline and granddaughter, Emma Pauline Gray of Durham, North Carolina; Son, Stephen Earl Gray, wife Jana and granddaughter, Hannah Elizabeth Gray and grandson Cole Allen Gray of Conroe, Texas; Brother, Robin E. Gray and wife Vicki of Dorsey, Mississippi.

He is preceded in death by his: Parents, Georgia Mae Gray and Crafton Gray; Brother, Hulon Holmes Gray; Brother, Crafton Hansel Gray; Sister, Iris Miriam Thrasher. Many loving nieces, nephews and friends.