OBITUARY: World War II Nurse Mary Lucile Kennedy, 96, of Palm Bay, Passed Away June 3

By  //  June 10, 2020

served in the Cadet Nurse Corps During WWII

Mary Lucille Kennedy passed away June 3 in Palm Bay, Florida, just twenty-five days before what would have been her ninety-seventh birthday. Lucille, as she was known, was born June 28, 1923 in Providence, RI, to Matthew and Margaret Kennedy.

BREVARD COUNTY • PALM BAY, FLORIDA – Mary Lucille Kennedy passed away June 3 in Palm Bay, Florida, just twenty-five days before what would have been her ninety-seventh birthday. Lucille, as she was known, was born June 28, 1923 in Providence, RI, to Matthew and Margaret Kennedy.

When she was four, her birth mother died of tuberculosis. Two years later, her father remarried, and Florence Beaudry Kennedy became her mother in every respect and inspired her to become a nurse.

Lucille grew up in Providence and is a graduate of St. Francis Xavier Academy, the St. Joseph Hospital School of Nursing in Providence, and Catholic University in Washington DC.

During WWII, she served in the Cadet Nurse Corps.

Lucille was a nursing instructor at the DC General Hospital School of Nursing. During the Vietnam War, she served on the battlefield and worked as a nursing advisor with the U.S. Agency for International Development. Later, she served as a nursing advisor for Pan American/World Health Organization (WHO) in Venezuela and the West Indies (Barbados, Trinidad, and Tobago.)

When she returned to the States, she worked at the Veteran’s Administration Hospital in Washington DC, where she lived for many years in Georgetown with her sister Margie, also a nurse with the U.S. government. Later, Lucille served at posts in Loma Linda, CA; Big Spring, TX; and Columbia, SC.

Lucille retired after thirty-one years of government service. Her dedication and professionalism were an inspiration to many. She was devoted to her extended family and a large but close circle of friends. She was active in the Women’s Guild at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Palm Bay, FL.

Lucille was predeceased by her parents, her sister Margie, her brother Bob, her dear friend Dorothy “Luke” Luketich, and many beloved aunts, uncles, and cousins from Rhode Island and Connecticut.

She leaves behind family and friends who loved her deeply and were inspired by her life of service, travel, and adventure, including cousins Mary Lou Beaudry, Howard and Mimi Logee, Michael Logee, Elizabeth Logee, Brian Holland and Gary Holland, Maureen Rice Onorato, Rosemary Rice Goettsche, and Luanne Rice; friends Terry and Michael McLemore, Claire McLemore, and Marlena McLemore; Annette and David Walker, Sarah Walker, Susannah Walker, and Daniel Walker; and the family of the late James Kim, including his wife Jane, Patty Kim-Scott, Kirby Kim, Julia Peck, and Isabelle Kim Johns.

Lucille will be buried at St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Palm Bay, FL. There will be no calling hours; please feel free to sign the guest book at BrownlieMaxwell.com

Donations in her memory may be made to Covenant House Florida or St. Joseph Catholic Church. In honor of Lucille, please be kind and care for others.

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Lucille retired after thirty-one years of government service. Her dedication and professionalism were an inspiration to many. She was devoted to her extended family and a large but close circle of friends. She was active in the Women’s Guild at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Palm Bay, FL.

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