James P McKenna, 28 Feb 1928 - 19 Mar 2008

MCKENNA, WATERS, HINTON, MALLOY

Posted By: Netha M Meyer (email)
Date: 4/9/2008 at 10:22:24

Jim was born the son of James Michael McKenna and Ella G. Waters McKenna on February 28, 1928 in Kinross, Iowa. He attended rural school through the eighth grade, then graduated from North English High School. Following his graduation he farmed near Kinross after which he moved to a farm near Udell until 1963 when he moved to Grinnell.
He was united in marriage with Pauline E. Hinton in Kinross on June 10, 1954. He was a route salesman for Anderson-Erickson Dairy for 22 years, retiring in February 1985. He had been a member of Alcoholics-Anonymous since 1957; a member of St. Mary’s Catholic Church in Grinnell, serving on its church council and as past president; served two terms on the Grinnell City Council; a member of the American Legion Post #53; a member of the Veterans of Foreign Wars, of which he served as post chaplain, and served as a member of the Grinnell Veterans Ceremonial Unit.
He served as a Boy Scout leader with Troop #313 as an assistant and as a scoutmaster from the mid-1960s until 1974. He participated in many historical trail hikes as well as taking scouts on several “High Adventure” trips to the Boundary Waters of Minnesota; a trip to the Black Hills of South Dakota; backpacking in the Smoky Mountains; and a canoe trip on the Current River in the Ozark Mountains of southern Missouri. He was selected as Scoutmaster of the Year of the Red Rock District in 1971. He also had served as a member of Grinnell Regional Hospice since 1994 and was the recipient of the Volunteer of the Year award.
Jim is survived by his wife of 53 years, Pauline McKenna of Grinnell; his children, Joe McKenna of Bremerton, Washington, Mike (Vicki) McKenna of Grinnell, David McKenna of Marshalltown, Tammy (Dan) McKanan of St. Joseph, Minnesota, Shawn (Lori) McKenna of Ankeny, Iowa, and Barbara McKenna of Iowa City, Iowa; seven grandsons and three granddaughters; one great grandson; and his sister, Margaret Malloy of Williamsburg, Iowa. Jim was preceded in death by his parents and his brother, William J. “Bill” McKenna.

Smith Funeral Home, Grinnell