Ann Kenning

Kenning, Catherine Ann (nee Clayton) 25 December 1936 – 26 May 2023 of Victoria, after a short, sudden illness.  Beloved and much missed mother, grandmother, aunt and friend, as well as wife and sister, she was a warm, vibrant and engaging presence.

Ann is predeceased by her second husband, Dr. Stuart Kenning; her first husband, Edgar Tornay; her sister, Dr. Joan Kaplan; her mother, Helen Clayton; and her aunt, Katherine Jones.

She is celebrated and survived by her daughter, Barbara (Tornay) Turk (Chris) of London, UK; her stepchildren Mike Kenning (Pauline); Stephen Kenning (Shannon); Cathleen Wansbrough (Len), all of Victoria; Janet Edgerton (Steve) of Edmonton, AB and her nine grandchildren: Spencer and Charlotte Turk, Scott and James Kenning, Rob (Kristy) and Tom Wansbrough, and Kelsy, Alyssa (Josh) and Amber Edgerton as well as her niece Reay (Kaplan) Maxwell (Jeremy) and grand-nephew and niece Ethan and Eliza Schloss, all of Atlanta, GA.

Born in Ottawa and raised in Montreal, Ann lived in New York City; Sarasota, FL; and Houston, TX before settling in Victoria in 1999 to marry her second husband and love of her life Dr. Stuart Kenning.  Ann and Stuart met as colleagues at the Royal Victoria Hospital in Montreal in the early 1960s, maintaining a long-distance friendship for more than 35 years before reconnecting. Ann earned her RN from the RVH School of Nursing, working as a nurse in Montreal and New York throughout the 1960s, and achieved her paralegal qualifications in the 1980s, working as a nurse paralegal in Houston for 16 years.

Ann loved participating, creating, and socialising – wherever she was, she joined in with enthusiasm and sincerity.  During her years in Houston in the 1980s and 90s, she was an active member of the local Mensa chapter, for which she hosted many social gatherings and volunteered in countless capacities during conventions.  Ann also engendered a spirit of love and equality as an ally and advocate for her LGBTQ+ friends she met through Mensa. Once settled in Victoria, she relished new relationships built in Newcomers’ Club, particularly her book club.

Ann was a keen and talented calligrapher, collage artist and photographer, and loved designing her annual holiday cards.  Together with Stuart, she enjoyed travelling, with trips to Alaska, the Panama Canal, and the Great Wall of China being particular highlights about which she loved to reminisce.

Ann’s family is tremendously grateful to the dedicated and caring professionals at Sunrise Senior Living, Trillium Douglas Care, Sunny Days Seniors Companions, HomeInstead and Surework for their kind and compassionate care of Ann for the past six years.  In lieu of flowers, the family would welcome donations to the MS Society in Ann’s honour.  A memorial service and celebration of life will be planned for late summer.