Obituary of Margaret Paige Kendall

Margaret Paige Kendall, aged 90, died peacefully at home in State College, PA. She was preceded in death by her husband of 49 years, William Anderson Kendall, her parents, Milton C. Paige and Claire (Brown) Paige, her brother Milton C. Paige Jr., and her son-in-law William Mastin. She is survived by her children Karen Mastin, David Kendall and his wife Ginger, and Linda Knox and her husband Peter; her grandchildren Elijah Mastin and his wife Justine, Rachel Mastin, Becky Mastin and her husband Louis Weil, grandchildren Timothy Mastin, Jamie Kendall, Ellie Kendall, and Abigail Knox; and many dear nieces and nephews. Peggy was born in Plymouth, MA, and lived in Arlington, Marshfield and Townsend MA. She earned a B.A. from Wellesley College in 1947 and subsequently contributed to the WWII war effort by teaching biology to soldiers at Fort Devens in Harvard, MA. In 1952 she received a M.S. in Horticulture from Ohio State University, the only woman in her class. During her studies she met Bill Kendall, who was pursuing a Ph.D. in Plant Physiology. Peggy and Bill were married in Townsend, MA in 1952, and soon moved to Lexington, KY, where Bill led research for the USDA. The couple worked hard to learn the southern way of life, beginning with lessons from the neighbors in making bourbon balls. By the time Karen, David and Linda were young children, the family was deeply involved in the neighborhood, their church, the YMCA and a variety of community clubs and organizations. Peggy often took on leadership roles. In the mid 1960's, she was a Girl Scout leader, PTA president and the first woman to be elected an elder in the Hunter Presbyterian Church. When Bill's work brought the family to State College in 1970, she devoted her time and talents to the Bellefonte YMCA swim team, the Nittany Valley Gem and Mineral Club and the State College Presbyterian Church, where she, again, took on leadership roles. In 1983 she was moderator of the Huntingdon Presbytery. She chaired the Major Mission Fund Special Committee in the 1980's that raised half a million dollars, and was a member of the first group of Certified Lay Preachers in the presbytery, beginning March 22, 1983 and continuing for over twenty years. She was a ruling elder commissioner to the 1991 General Assembly. Through the years of her work with the presbytery, she was a strong advocate for the LGBTQ community, specifically for the rights to ordination and marriage. Later, Peggy moved from the large State College church to the much smaller Upper Spruce Creek Presbyterian Church, where she worked on the worship committee and as a lay pastor, preaching many nurturing and thought provoking sermons. In the early 1990's Peggy and Bill provided quality, hands-on child care for Becky and Tim while their Mom Karen, was driving a school bus. They also happily attended Becky's numerous dance recitals and many baseball games cheering for Eli and Tim. In addition to her church work, Peggy volunteered with the Sight Loss Support Group of Central Pennsylvania. Doing live verbal audio description of visual elements of performances, she helped bring the joy of live theatre to visually impaired people at several venues in the State College Area. Her previous pastor at Upper Spruce Creek, John Diller, provided that "Peggy was a thoughtful interpreter of scripture and church direction. A champion of anything which sprang from or led toward fellowship, she prayed and worked fervently for internal and ecumenical reconciliation. She was as willing to learn a new hymn as she was ready to download the latest app. She didn't believe in the world passing her by. She believed her presence and her gifts were no accident; she was not going to be a bystander." A celebration of Peggy's life will be held at Upper Spruce Creek Presbyterian Church, 2620 Spruce Creek Rd, Pennsylvania Furnace, on Saturday, November 12, 2016. Visitation will begin at 10:00 AM, the service at 11:00. Burial will take place at the Graysville Cemetery immediately following the service. Memorial donations may be made to the Upper Spruce Creek Presbyterian Church, 2620 Spruce Creek Rd, Pennsylvania Furnace, PA 16865 or the Pennsylvania Parks and Forest Foundation, 1845 Market St #202, Camp Hill, PA 17011. Arrangements are under the care of Koch Funeral Home, State College. Online condolences and signing of the guest book may be entered at www.kochfuneralhome.com or visit us on Facebook.