Lula Virginia Kennedy was born on February 2, 1946, in Fort Gibson, Oklahoma and joined our Savior Jesus Christ in eternal glory on Saturday, August 10, 2024. Over the years, she enjoyed visiting many churches and became a founding member of The Little Lambs Christian Church (TLC) in 2002. She was always a generous donor, giving to countless charities and helping those in need. Although Lula may have seemed quiet and reserved in some circumstances, she always had a calculated opinion and was very verbal at home. She was a very strong woman and a very loving wife and mother.

She met the love of her life while attending Langston University in Langston, OK in 1964 and to this union were born four sons. While being a resident of Cleveland for 56 years, Lula served her community as an elementary teacher for the Cleveland Public School System for grades 1, 3, 4, and 5 at Steven Howe Elementary, Waverly Elementary and Scranton Elementary Schools. In 1999, she decided to begin earning her master’s degree in education and completed the degree in 2001. She retired in 2008, after 39.5 years of service. After retirement, some of her favorite television shows were found on the Trinity Broadcasting Network, NCIS Hawaii, and Family Feud. Education was very important to her, and she instilled this value in her children. She was a fantastic cook who loved inviting guests to sit down and share a meal. As an exceptional athlete, she played and won many games of basketball with her high school team, where she was an All-State athlete, and with family members and friends. She played competitive softball at church picnics, often hitting doubles or triples which would have been homeruns if she could have run faster. Lula was a proficient league bowler for many years and encouraged her children to join bowling leagues. She will be deeply missed by all who knew her.

Lula is survived by her husband Monroe Kennedy of 57 years; brother Jesse (Eva); sons Monroe Jr. (Karen), Gerald, Michael (Deidre), and Christopher; grandsons Monroe III (Sonia), Stephen (Gamze), and Brian; granddaughters Stephanie, Jemima, and Candace (Mikel); great grandsons Joshua and Niklaus; and great granddaughters Sanaa, Simone, Lea, Kayelah, and My’Kel; and a host of nephews and nieces.

She was preceded in death by her parents, Richard and Mary Graham, stepfather Rev. Fred Wilson, brothers Richard and Shalie, sister Erma, sister-in-law Barbara, nephew Thurlindo, and niece Mary.