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Teddy was born in Charlottesville, Virginia on October 15, 1942, and was the fourth child of the late Thomas A. and Mary S. Canody. He was also preceded in death by his grandparents, Hawes and Annie Canody, and William and Sanada Smith; his father-in-law, B.L. Thurston; his brother -in-law, Willis Ballard; his grandfather-in-law, Kester Vess; his aunt-in-law, Velma Vess; and two great friends whom he dearly missed, David Johnson and Glenn Gibson.
Teddy is survived by his wife of over 40 years, Bertha T. (Moffie) Kennedy of Crozet; his sisters, Lillian K. Ballard of White Hall, Virginia, and Mildred K. McGee and her husband, Dwight, of Lynchburg, Virginia; and his brother, W.T. Kennedy and his wife, Ruby, of Free Union, Virginia.
Teddy is also survived by his mother-in-law, Frances V. Thurston, and his sister and brother-in-law, Mary T. and Harold Whitlow, all of Crozet, Virginia; Linda and Randy King, of Dublin, North Carolina; his nieces and nephews, Pat Johnson and her husband Andy, Kim Shaw and her husband Jeff, Danny McGee and his wife Ninnette, Don McGee and his wife Karen, Diane Smith and her husband Jeff, Dana Berry and her husband Dave, Edward C. Kennedy and his wife Jackie, D. Whitlow and his wife, Marie; Sherri Payne and her husband, Todd, and Ben Whitlow and his wife, Charity; Eric King; his great-nieces and nephews, Phil Johnson, his wife SaraBeth, and their daughters, Abigail and Katherine, Will Johnson, his wife Melissa, and their sons, Caleb and Trevor, Laura Shreckhise, her husband John, and their children, Drew and Ella, Tiffany Shaw, her life partner Joe Kimble, and their sons, Jacob and Jesse, Jared and Shannon Shaw, Bobby, Dwight (Jr.), and Dannette McGee, Javan Berry, Karen Shumaker, Jason Graves, Kathleen Gill and her daughter, piper, Kelly Marchal, Dorothy Hurt, Cameron, Gabriel, and Danielle Whitlow, Katie, Kelsey, and Nathan Payne, and Thurston Whitlow.
Teddy graduated from Albemarle High School and was a retired Maintenance Superintendent with the Virginia Department of Transportation after over 30 years of service.
He was a member of King Solomon's Lodge #194, AF and AM, The Lynchburg Scottish Rite Bodies, the Rivanna Rifle and Pistol Club, The National Rifle Association, The Gunsmithing Association of America, and the Single Action Shooting Society.
Teddy's greatest joys in life were his wife, his family, his home, and he took great pride in having a lawn that was perfect in every way. He was a true American, an avid outdoorsman, hunter and gun collector. He had a God given talent to see a piece of wood and make anything he desired out of it. He had crafted everything from TV trays to a complete set of cherry kitchen cabinets for his brother's home, to a hand designed and crafted solid walnut roll-top desk for his wife. Teddy had also designed and hand-crafted many hunting knives, complete with hand sewn leather sheathes, as well as many household knives. He had recently taken up the art of designing and hand-braiding leather gun slings. He took great pride in his knowledge of guns and their safety issues, and passed on this knowledge to his little hunting buddies, Cameron and Nathan. He was an enthusiastic teacher and mentor for all of his nieces and nephews, and their children, and he loved them unconditionally and without reservation.
He was a very special great "Uncle Scetty" to his little friend Gabriel. Gabriel sought out "Uncle Scetty's" hand to hold during family prayer at meals and looked for his lap to climb onto whenever possible. Katie, and Kelsey were his "girls" and Thurston was his "let's go to the beach" buddy as well. He often said his Shannon was a little doll.
Teddy lived his life by doing the things he enjoyed, up until the last minutes of his life. He had very serious health issues, which he never wanted to discuss and he never sought pity because of these issues. Teddy wanted only to do what he wanted as long as he could and to fight a good fight until the end, which he was able to do. To live your life and leave a legacy such as Teddy's is to have lived your life well. We were blessed to have had him for as long as we did.
The family suggests that in lieu of flowers, memorial donations in Teddy's memory be made to the Western Albemarle Rescue Squad or the Crozet Volunteer Fire Department.
As per Teddy's request, there will be no services held. Anderson Funeral Home is in charge of the arrangements.
Published in the Daily Progress from April 7 to April 8, 2007
Obituary submitted by Sam Clarke.
Theodore G. (Teddy) Kennedy, 64, of Crozet, Virginia, passed away at his home Thursday, April 5, 2007.
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