PULLMAN, Wash. – Thomas L. Kennedy, 85, former vice provost for instruction at WSU, died June 5, 2015, at Pullman Regional Hospital. The Funeral Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Tuesday, June 16, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pullman, with reception to follow at Banyan’s on the Ridge.
He was a professor of history at WSU, co-founded the world civilizations program and was instrumental in getting the Asia Program off the ground, according to his daughter, Elizabeth Siler, a clinical assistant professor of English at WSU who submitted the following obituary:
Thomas “Tom” Larew Kennedy died on June 5, 2015 in Pullman, Wash., from complications of cancer. He was 85.
Tom was born May 9, 1930 in Newark, New Jersey to Maida Larew Kennedy and Thomas A. Kennedy. After the death of his father, before Tom was one, he was raised in Plainfield, New Jersey at his mother’s family’s home on Lenox Avenue, where his maternal grandfather, Rufus Case Larew, filled the role of father in his life.
A lifelong Roman Catholic, Tom earned degrees at Villanova and Georgetown, and ultimately a PhD in East Asian Languages and Cultures from Columbia University, but he always maintained his most significant educational achievement was graduating from Xavier High School in New York City in 1948. The Jesuit education he received there formed the intellectual and spiritual framework that guided his life.
Another formative experience was his 10 years in the US Marine Corps, where he served as a captain and a Chinese language specialist in Okinawa. During the late 1950s and early 1960s, he also worked for the National Security Agency.
He married Mathilde E. “Micki” McGeary on December 28, 1957 in Jenkintown, PA, and they had three children.
After completing his PhD at Columbia University in 1968, he accepted a position in the history department at Washington State University in 1970 and moved with his family to Pullman, WA, where he lived the remainder of his life. By the time he retired as a full professor in 2001, he had served as Interim Dean of the College of Liberal Arts and Vice Provost for Instruction as well as in other administrative roles. He was also instrumental in developing Washington State University’s Asia Program. He was one of the two co-founders of the World Civilizations component of the General Education Program.
He remained committed to his Catholic faith. He was a parishioner at Sacred Heart Parish, and was part of the committee that developed St. Thomas More, the university’s Catholic Student Center.
Tom enjoyed reading, working out at the Student Recreation Center, square dancing, baseball, lively conversation, animals, fishing, and travel. He traveled or lived on every continent except Antarctica and Australia, and lived for extended periods in Taiwan, Okinawa, and China.
Most of all, he loved his family. His wife preceded him in death in 1994. He is survived by his daughter Elizabeth Siler (married to Patrick Siler) of Pullman; son Joseph Kennedy (married to Tina Garbell Kennedy) of Spokane; and daughter Maida Xiao (married to Xiao Wei) of Hong Kong SAR; his seven grandchildren, Pamela Mejia of Oakland, CA; Brian Siler of Pullman, WA; Nikki Kennedy of Spokane; Justin Xiao of Singapore; Xaviera (Mei Mei) Xiao of Hong Kong SAR; Xandra (Pei Pei) Xiao of London, UK; and Mathilde (Wei Wei) Xiao of London, UK; and his great-granddaughter, Frances Joplin Mejia of Oakland, CA; as well as his companion of 17 years, Susan Reisenauer of Rathdrum, ID.
They will miss him terribly, as will his many friends and colleagues.
A rosary is scheduled for June 15 at 7:00 p.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pullman WA. A memorial Mass is scheduled for June 16, 2015 at 10:30 a.m. at Sacred Heart Catholic Church in Pullman, WA. A reception will follow at Banyans on the Ridge. All are welcome to attend any or all of these events to celebrate Tom’s life. In lieu of flowers, donations can be sent to Xavier High School at 30 W. 16th Street, NY, NY 10011-6302.
The family would like to thank the staff at Pullman Regional Hospital for their care and dedication in assisting Tom in his final days.