https://www.kennyfuneralhomes.com/

The Kenny Funeral Home, 41 Main Street, Sharon, CT (2026)

01/12/2026

SHARON - Theodore Ned Drumm passed away peacefully on Jan. 1, 2026 after a long battle with heart failure.

Ted Drumm was born Nov. 26, 1932 in Sharon to the late Julia and Ned Drumm. He lived all his life in Sharon.

Ted was a loving father and husband. He was a member of the First Church of Christ Congregational and the Taghhannuck Grange No. 100 for more than 50 years. He served on the board of Deacons and was the first moderator of the church. He also served on the Sharon Board of Finance. He ran a paint contracting business for more than 35 years.

He is predeceased by his wife and son. There are no survivors.

A celebration of life will be held on Saturday, January 17 at 11:00AM at The First Church of Christ Congregational in Sharon.

Burial is private.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Sharon Ambulance Squad on The Teddy Lee Memorial Scholarship Fund, 271 Main Street, Suite 3, Great Barrington, MA 01230.

01/05/2026

SHARON - Steven Michael “Bird” Willette, 76, of Silver Lake Shores, passed away on December 25, 2025 at Vassar Brother Medical Center, with his family at his side.

Steve was born in New York City to Dorman Willette and Ann (Sabol) Willette.

He grew up in the Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood of Manhattan, where he fell in love with doowop, a cappella, and all things music.

As a teen he spent summers in Sharon, where he and his family built a cabin near Mudge Pond; he relocated here permanently in the early 90s to raise his children amid the strong community and natural beauty.

Steve was a vocalist, a genuine classic car lover, and a silversmith; he operated a jewelry business with his wife for a number of years, after which he worked as a bus driver, safely driving children for CT Region 1 as well as the Webutuk school.

He is survived by his beloved wife of 32 years, Maureen; his son, Ryan; and his daughter, Desirée.

The family has chosen to temporarily hold off on memorial services to allow more time for loved ones to join us. Details will be made public as they are decided on.

12/31/2025

CORNWALL - A good man has passed. Gerald “Jerry” Blakey, 89, of Cornwall, CT passed on December 20th, 2025.

He was predeceased by his parents Ernestine L. Blakey and Burt Blakey of West Cornwall, CT, his brother Tom Blakey of Falls Village, and his daughter Karen B. Fisher of Cornwall.

He leaves his wife of 70 years, Patricia “Pat” Blakey of Cornwall, his son David M. Blakey of Cornwall Bridge, his daughter Lori B. Welles and her husband David Welles of West Cornwall, his granddaughter Melissa B. Root of Terryville, great granddaughter Devyn Root of Terryville, and his niece Pam B. Hart and her husband Doug of Belencia, CA. Brother James Blakey of Florida.

Jerry graduated from HVRHS in 1954. He started dating Patricia “Pat” Blakey in high school, and they were married on Sept. 3rd, 1955.

Their first challenge as newlyweds was hearing their new furniture had washed away in the flood of 55!

After high school, Jerry began working at Housatonic Valley Rug Shop in Cornwall Bridge.

In 1979 he bought HVRS with his partner Ed Kenniston. He retired in 2006.

Early on in his adult life he began getting involved in all things Cornwall. A member of the UCC in Cornwall, he served on numerous boards and committees there. Always ready to fix or fabricate, clean or repair whatever was needed. He served on the town's P&Z committee, building committees and more, he was elected tax collector. He was proud to serve in the Cornwall Fire Dept. Where there was a need he found solutions.

Pat and Jerry volunteered at the Soup Kitchen in Torrington, CT and slept in the shelter for Operation Overflow also in Torrington. Together they started the medical equipment loan program out of the UCC. Volunteering 100s of hours and traveling 100s of miles delivering and picking up medical equipment for those in need.

Jerry and Pat opened their garage after the tornado of ‘89 and started the Blakey Family Restaurant to feed the town’s people and volunteers as the clean up continued. Jerry organized Blood drives, built houses in Mexico through the La Casa Project, hosted tornado anniversary parties and so much more.

Jerry amassed numerous awards, citations and recognitions for all he did. Each was carefully put away, not to be displayed, because it never was about those. As one friend said, Jerry didn’t know he did extraordinary things, it’s just what you're supposed to do. He was talented, humble and generous. He loved the community and the people and always was there to help. He was a family man, caring for them up to the end.

Among the many awards he was particularly proud of his Public Service award from the State of CT in 2001, The Connecticut Conference, UCC Living Waters Award in 2015 and an honoree with Pat on The HVRHS Alumni Wall of Honors 2023.

Anyone who ever met Jerry would know that he was a man of many words and always a man of his word, he will be missed.

The family would like to thank his Smilow Cancer Hospital team in Torrington, CT.

Services will be held on January 10th, 2026 at 1:00PM, at the UCC, Bolton Hill Road, in Cornwall.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Cornwall Volunteer Fire Dept. and EMS, American Cancer Society, or the UCC Cornwall capital improvement fund.

12/29/2025

FALLS VILLAGE - Francis J. “Bosco” Schell of Falls Village passed away peacefully on December 20th at East Mountain House in Lakeville surrounded by members of his family.

Born in Kosice, Slovakia, in 1934 to a family of landowners in their ancestral home, he came to the United States in 1947 following the wreckage of the Second World War.

He gained full scholarships to the Montclair Academy in New Jersey and to Williams College in Massachusetts before serving in the US Army in Germany.

Soon after his return to New York City he began work at the Reader’s Digest where he would stay for his entire professional career, starting in Paris at the International Edition, and returning to the US to create Families, and then on to leading the non-US editions of the magazine, the International and global Condensed Books.

He married Natalia Gortchacow in 1962, who pre-deceased him in 1992, and Page Dickey in 2000. He was devoted to his family and children, and to the huge cohort of friends he kept, who shared his relentless joie de vivre, his love of gardens, music, parties, dancing and drama.

Bosco was deeply involved in charity work, becoming by family tradition a member of the Catholic Sovereign Order of Malta, where he reached the rank of Knight Grand Cross of Honor and Devotion. He worked tirelessly to channel funds and medical equipment to his beloved Hungarians writhing under the Soviet yoke and then in aid of their successful quest for economic and political freedom. He headed the Hungarian Association of the Knights of Malta in Exile which led to the re-creation of the Hungarian Delegation in Hungary.

In his later years, he chaired the board of the David M. Hunt Library in Falls Village where he could be found raising funds by selling cuttings from his own greenhouse along with his legendary home-made jam.

Bosco’s two lifelong passions were gardening and music. Always an enthusiastic dabbler, retirement enabled him to attend the Brooklyn Botanical Gardens where he earned his degree in horticulture in 1997 before settling down with Page in her published garden at Duck Hill in North Salem, NY. They eventually moved to Falls Village in 2015 where they established Church House and its garden. He took great pride in its opening to the public and last gave a virtual tour of his greenhouse in 2021 to benefit charity.

He is remembered by his loving wife Page, his two children Peter Schell and Marie-Elizabeth Offierski and their spouses Blandine and Stefan, his four step-children Keith Dickey, Kim Dickey Ambrose, Scott Dickey and Jean Dickey Quaintance and their spouses Ally, Kirk, Ilia and Don, by his eight grandchildren Irène, Valentine, Anastasia, Paul, Frederic, Conrad, Gregor, and Olga and his six step-grand-children Claire, Helen, Freddy, Charlie, Alex and Keala.

A funeral mass will take place at 11:00AM on January 5th, 2026 at St. Martin of Tours Church of St. Mary in Lakeville. Burial will follow at Sleep Hollow Cemetery in Tarrytown, NY.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to East Mountain House in Lakeville.

12/24/2025

SHARON - Austin Howard Barney—known simply as “Barney” to many, of Sharon, CT, age 87, died on December 23rd after his heroic battle with the black breath, hanahaki disease, cooties, simian flu and feline leukemia finally came to an end.

Austin was born on July 26th, 1938, son of Sylvester and Iva Barney.

He leaves behind an overwhelming amount of junk—sorry, treasures. If you’ve ever dreamed of owning a console TV roughly the size of a Buick, a soot-encrusted coffee pot that hasn’t been properly cleaned since the Reagan administration or creatively bent hangers that he had hanging in his living room windows to dry clothes on, give us a call. Please wait for the appropriate, respectful amount of time. Tomorrow should be fine.

Austin was frugal to the extreme; some may have called him “cheap,” but he preferred to think of himself as a pioneer in recycling—decades before it was cool. His kitchen was home to a vast collection of cool whip and country crock containers. The biggest challenge was finding actual cool whip or butter in his refrigerator with all the containers of leftovers that looked the same. “Open at your own risk” was our motto.

He leaves behind a wonderfully dysfunctional family—a group he tolerated, loved and occasionally avoided.

Austin was world-renowned for his lack of patience, grossly excessive extreme sarcasm, not holding back his opinion and knack for telling you exactly how wrong you were. One of his favorite quotes was, “I was only wrong once in my life. I thought I made a mistake.”

He always preferred his own cooking to anyone else’s—and to be fair, it was actually pretty good.

Austin served proudly with the 6th Marines in the United States Marine Corps from February 10, 1958, through February 9, 1962. Semper Fi!

He was also a volunteer fireman for several years, until he realized that sprinting in the opposite direction from fire was more aligned with his personal survival goals.

A natural mountain man, he ate things from the swamp that most people avoid and cooked on a wood stove for many years. He was an avid bird watcher and found joy in feeding all the animals that frequented his property.

He was predeceased by his brothers, Sylvester Barney, Louis Barney and his sister Shirley MacDougall.

He is survived by his daughters Darlene Hardzog, Margaret Gdovin (Mike); his son, Austin Barney Jr (Kate); his grandchildren, Savannah Hardzog, Jordan Gdovin, Violet Barney, Amethyst Barney and Austin Barney III; and his sister Anita Baird along with various other relatives. You know who you are. He will be greatly missed.

There will be no viewing, as his children refused to comply with his request to be taxidermied and propped in the corner with a beer or a glass of scotch in his hand so guests could admire him in his natural state.

Services are pending and details will be shared at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the American Red Cross in his memory.

Austin Barney has approved this message. Approval notwithstanding, it would have read the same.

12/22/2025

SALISBURY – Bob Weber, age 84, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on December 14, 2025 in his favorite chair in the home he built and loved in Salisbury, CT. He was married to Jeanette Weber for 57 years.

Robert Allen Weber was born March 1, 1941 in New York City, the son of the late Harold and Theresa Zeitler Weber.

Bob graduated from DeWitt Clinton High School and City College where he majored in Industrial Engineering.

An outstanding athlete, he played lacrosse and ran track, primarily on a record-setting mile relay team. For many years, going on long runs after work was his stress-reducer.

Bob served in the U.S. Marine Corps and attended the Harvard Business School Management Program. He was employed by Bulova Watch Company for 43 years as an Industrial Engineer and rose to Vice President. Since his retirement in 2007, he served as a consultant to Bulova on environmental sites until his death.

Bob and Jeanette were married on May 4, 1968. Their son, Eric, was born in 1970 and twin daughters, Laura and Christine, followed in 1972. Having three babies in two years was indeed a “fun but challenging experience” for two parents who were only children. Bob and Jeanette moved from New York City to Glen Rock, NJ in 1970 where they raised their family, made many friends, and became involved in the community.

After searching for a weekend home for several years, Jeanette urged Bob to follow his dream of designing and building a house. His specifications were: a gravel road, an open meadow setting, and a western view of the mountains. And they found such a site north of Salisbury. The house was completed in 1998, and they were weekenders until becoming full-time residents in 2014. Why Salisbury? When the children were young, the family often traveled from New Jersey to Vermont, driving through Salisbury and stopping at the White Hart Inn where Elyse Harney had a general store with penny candy. There the children got to select candy for the rest of the drive. Each time, Bob would say: “I would love to live in Salisbury some day…”

Bob had a wide range of interests: landscaping and gardening, sports, cooking and grilling, U.S. history, music, dinner parties, travel, cars, NY Times, good wines, long walks with his dog – and most of all, spending time with his family and friends. He attended all the children’s soccer games, wrestling matches, and other events. He served on the Glen Rock Sports Association, was treasurer of the Salisbury Congregational Church, and grilled hundreds of hot dogs for the Salisbury Fall Festival for many years.

He had long-time close friendships from his single days in New York City, his many years at Bulova, and raising his family in New Jersey.

He and Jeanette enjoyed wonderful trips together throughout the United States, the Caribbean, Europe, Scandinavia, Asia, Australia, and New Zealand. Some trips were by themselves and others with family or close friends. Bob was usually the designated driver and learned to negotiate roundabouts, drive on the left, wait for herds of sheep, end up in very narrow lanes, discover too late the sign indicating “pedestrians only,” and numerous other funny memories.

Bob was a devoted husband to Jeanette. He was a beloved father to his children. Having lost his own father at age 7, Bob always tried to be the father that he never had. And he so enjoyed each grandchild as he or she joined the family.

He is survived by his wife, Jeanette; son Eric and wife Kristie of Brooklyn; daughter Laura and husband Timmy of El Cerrito, CA; Christine and husband Scott of Cromwell, CT; and seven grandchildren ranging in age from 22 to 1: Madison, Belle, Cooper, Ryan, Skyler, Theo, and Ethan. He was Robert, Bob, Dad, Papa, Weber, or Webs to those who knew him, loved him, and will miss him so very much.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Salisbury Volunteer Ambulance Service, PO Box 582, Salisbury, CT 06068.

A celebration of Bob’s life will be held in Salisbury in Spring 2026.

12/17/2025

SHARON - John Gregory (Gregg) Stallings, 67, of Sharon, Connecticut passed away December 2nd, 2025, at his home.

John was born December 25th, 1957, St. Louis, Missouri and was preceded in death by his father Dr. Hugh A. Stallings, mother, Mary John Stallings McCormick and a brother Jeffrey Stallings.

He attended Reitz Memorial High School in Evansville, Indiana as well as the University of Miami. He graduated the University of Alabama in Tuscaloosa, AL. While at Alabama, Gregg was both a cheerleader and President of Sigma Chi. He attained a Bachelor of Science Degree in Marketing and Advertising.

Gregg married John H. Broomfield in 2006 and they have maintained a residence in Sharon, CT for 19 years.

Gregg started his formal career as a Sales Manager at Whittle Communications. Afterward, he started his own company, The Design Crew in Washington, DC.

After a role as a Business Development Manager at the Image Bank in Los Angeles, he rose to the position of Director of the Americas - Corbis Corporation in Seattle, WA, a privately held company owned by Bill Gates. He was named Top Manager for two consecutive years. He presently owned the Found Art Co. + Gregory Marks Estate Sales in Sharon, CT.

Gregg came from a large family and is survived by his sisters Amy (Dan Glover), Darcy (Mike Winslow), Lesly (Pete Wagner), Betsy McAtee and brother Todd (Susan), stepfather Russell McCormick, as well as many nieces, nephews and cousins.

Gregg was a warm caring, and generous man with an extensive and varied circle of friends. He will be missed greatly including by his beloved Weimaraner, Bill.

A local Celebration of Life in his honor will be held at The Trinity Retreat Center in West Cornwall, CT on May 10, 2026. Time TBD.

Contributions in Gregg’s memory can be made to the American Diabetes Association (ADA).

11/17/2025

SALISBURY - Lori Hoyt, 64, of Salisbury, Connecticut passed away peacefully surrounded by her friends and family on November 13, 2025.

Lori was a loving and caring mother, a devoted friend, and an exceptional daughter. Her presence, laughter, and joy will be deeply missed.

Lori was born on October 16th, 1961 in Hartford, Connecticut and spent her life among the charming beauty in the northwest corner of Connecticut.

Lori dedicated her life to her family, her friends, her work, and her passions. She often remarked that her greatest joy was raising her children Brianna and Christopher. Lori was recognized for her incredible skill as a hairstylist, as evidenced by her ever-growing list of lifelong clients who often ended up as close friends. Her
salon chair is remembered as a happy, cheerful, uplifting place, one where everyone’s beauty could be recognized.

Lori’s passion for travel, exploring, and nature was a testament to her love of life and shared moments of pleasure. Her life was lived to its very fullest, spent among the joys and happiness of her friends and the care and love of her family.

Lori is survived by her daughter Brianna Hoyt, son Christopher Hoyt, mother Carolyn Kieffer, brother Joseph Frenette III, sister Lisa Kulig and brother in law Martin, nieces Cordelia Capodiferro, Maya and Sophia Frenette, nephew Joseph Frenette IV , partner David Williams, mother-in-law Rosemary Hoyt and father-in-law Harold Hoyt, sister-in-law Maryann Hoyt-Mazurek, brother-in-law Todd Mazurek, and nephew Hudson Mazurek, cousins Tami Warren, Joseph Spirito and many more, cats Maurice and Cornelius, many friends, clients, and fellow Northwest corner community-members.

Respecting Lori’s wish, she will be cremated with a Celebration of Life service at Kenny Funeral Home on November 22, 2025 from 10-12pm.

Her family invites all who know and love her to attend and share their favorite stories and memories.

11/12/2025

SHARON - Allen Young passed away on Saturday, November 8, after a long battle with Parkinson’s disease. He would have turned 85 on November 14.

Academically, Allen was hard to match as he sailed through the Bronx School of Science, Yale University, and Harvard Law School. He returned to Yale in his retirement to earn a MA in history. Allen’s sport was reading history books, and he could probably tell you what Napoleon had for breakfast.

Allen spent 26 happy years at PricewaterhouseCoopers where he was Deputy General Counsel. It was in that time that he developed a love for a perfect Manhattan straight up. This remained his cocktail time favorite.

Allen was active in Sharon town politics and served on the board of The Hotchkiss Library. He served on the Zoning Board of Appeals and the Democratic Town Committee. He was also on the board of Crescendo.

Allen is remembered by his family as being joyful and deeply kind. He is survived by his wife Lindley Young, his daughter Ridgley Sraka, his son Nate Young and stepdaughters Katherine Singer and Ann Volkwein. His grandchildren and step-grandchildren are Hazel Straka, Henry Straka, Alisa Young, Victor Young, Jackson Singer, Sloane Singer, and Maximus Saxton.

In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Hotchkiss Library.

11/10/2025

SALISBURY - Elizabeth Stone Potter passed away peacefully on November 5, 2025 due to complications of Parkinson's disease. She had recently celebrated her 94th birthday.

She was born in northern (then still rural) Westchester county to Ralph and Betty Stone.

"Pebble" (a nick name afforded her as the first child in a family of Stones) cherished all her communities, especially those in New York City and Norfolk, CT.

After a childhood education in a much storied one room schoolhouse in Waccabuc, she left home for northern Virginia and became a proud member of the Foxcroft School class of 1949.

Graduating from Foxcroft she went, with her big horse in tow, to Wellesley College. There (or at least nearby) she met the dashing Idahoan with a sports car who would become her husband for nearly 60 years.

She and Dave set up a home in New York City after some time at Marine Corps camps and in Cambridge, MA, where their first child was born.

Pebble raised two boys in the teeth of the complicated era that was the ’60 and ‘70s, and she did a really good job of it, perhaps helped along by her one nightly cigarette and vodka on the rocks.

Education was the love of her professional life. She taught for a little while at Spence School, but spent nearly 40 years teaching at Chapin School. She founded the audio-visual department at Chapin (even though she was perplexed by the family VCR machine), taught lower school science, led a home room for fourth graders, and generally left a positive imprint on generations of talented young women. She loved Chapin – its people and values, and all the girls she taught there over the years – and worked very hard at being the best teacher she could be. She no doubt sends a Green and Gold hug down to all her former colleagues and students and wishes the very best to every girl who ever walked in the doors on East End Avenue.

In the early ‘70s, Pebble’s friendship with Barbara Gridley led her to Norfolk, a then remote but highly civilized town in northwest Connecticut. The house on Mountain Road became home, a refuge but also a place of excitement and discovery. Norfolk was and is a place filled with what Pebble referred to as “all the best people” – she loved everyone and we know that she missed dearly her social life with the Isabellas and all the friends in town and at the Country Club.

Though too many of those friends have already left, there are many still there and we all thank you from the bottom of our hearts for the love you continued to show Pebble after she moved to Noble Horizons.

And her last community at Noble Horizons was a gift to us all. It would take too long to thank everyone there, but we are deeply grateful for the care and love and tenderness you showed Elizabeth (she finally lost that nick name when she got to Noble!). It is a wonderful, caring place.

Elizabeth was much beloved by her sons David and Nick, her daughters-in-law Ellen Bauerle and Lee Findlay Potter, her grandchildren Claire (Michael Schneider) and Natalie Potter and Arthur, Lila and Nina Potter, and most recently a great grandson Bennet Stone Potter-Schneider. We all will miss her dearly.

There is so much more to say – the pets and the sports, her resilience and humor, and the trips and the curiosity about nature and the environment. Elizabeth loved this earth and she made everything she could of her time here. We love her and miss her.

The family is planning a memory service in the Spring of 2026.

10/27/2025

TORRINGTON – Joan Jardine, 90, of Mill Lane, passed away at home on October 23, 2025. She was the loving wife of David Jardine.

Joan was born August 9th, 1935, in Throop, Pennsylvania, daughter of the late Joseph and Vera (Ezepchick) Zigmont.

Joan graduated from Harding High School.

She was a working artist for much of her adult life, starting her career studying plein air impressionist oil painting at the Cape Cod School of Art. Her work evolved to include a more representational style, and eventually a large body of abstract pieces. Her award-winning work has been shown in galleries and juried art shows throughout southern New England.

She is survived by her daughter Leslie and her husband George, brothers Joseph, Victor, and their families, nephews Gregory, Christopher, and their families, daughter in law Huong, and the extended Jardine family. She was predeceased by her son Douglas, and brother Michael.

A memorial service will be held at All Saints of America Orthodox Church, 313 Twin Lakes Road, Salisbury, Connecticut on Thursday, October 30, at 10:00 a.m.

Memorial contributions may be made to the All Saints of America Orthodox Church, PO Box 45, Salisbury, CT 06068.

The Kenny Funeral Home

01/12/2026

01/05/2026

12/31/2025

12/29/2025

12/24/2025

12/22/2025

12/17/2025

11/17/2025

11/12/2025

11/10/2025

10/27/2025

Address

Website

Alerts

Contact The Practice

Shortcuts

Share

Category