a warm person at the same time. It might
have been that Midwestern influence from
his upbringing, I don’t know. He and Bernie
Mulligan had a friendship like two brothers.
Even though the two of them were political
opposites, they could debate issues while
respecting each other’s views. I saw that
same quality in Dennis in community work.
When people got stuck on an issue he lis-
tened to both sides and looked for the com-
mon ground to understand how they could
work out a solution together.”
“I’ve been a nurse for over 40 years and
I’ve been with patients when they received a
grim prognosis. Dennis was a true optimist.
He had always led a healthy, active life-
style and he had every intention of beating
his cancer. He dealt with the disease with
great dignity. In those difficult moments,
riding home from Stanford Hospital after
receiving bad news from the doctors,
Dennis focused on making his family and
friends feel comfortable. He was generous
with his attention and affection for others.
Dennis was, in the truest sense of the
word, beloved.” thought how nice it would be if our local
symphony had a bigger following and
support for a longer performance season.
We got some people together and created
the Friends of the South Valley Symphony,
held some fundraisers, and were gratified to
see membership grow.”
“Dennis was a unique, special man, a
perpetually cheerful spirit. His passing has
been a major loss to me personally and what
a big heart he had for our community.”
Jerry Dommer Swanee Edwards
“I first met Dennis at Rotary and we
quickly struck up a friendship. As an
architect and developer, I had dealt with
Parsons Engineering, and Dennis had
worked there for a time. I helped design the
IBM facility on Bailey Road where Dennis
was employed before entering public service
here in Morgan Hill.”
“We were also golf buddies. We played
the golf courses in Gilroy, Gavilan, Eagle
Ridge and Coyote Creek and at Rotary
Club tournaments. Dennis liked to improve
his golf game and be competitive but for
him it was more about fun, exercise and
camaraderie. Golf provides lots of time for
discussion, and we talked about everything
from the community welfare of Morgan
Hill to sports, music, politics, and more.”
“When he ran for a position on the
Santa Clara Valley Water District board,
Dennis asked me to be his campaign
treasurer. He was very concerned about our
precious water resources, particularly during
the long drought. Good stewardship was at
the top of his platform and his professional
engineering background made him well-
suited for the position.”
“We both enjoyed the symphony and
gmh TODAY had
the opportunity to inter-
view Dennis Kennedy
in early 2015. You can
read the story online
at https://issuu.com/
jcljm/docs/01_gmhto-
day_2015_march.
“I helped Dennis with his mayoral and
water district election campaigns. He
always put integrity first, never wanting to
lose the public’s trust in him. During the
water district race some information came
to me that would have been damaging to
his opponent. Dennis had no interest in
running attack ads. He said ‘I don’t work
that way, I want to win on my own merits.’
And that’s what he did.”
A Legacy of Public Service
MORGAN HILL
Leadership
Centennial Recreation Center
Chamber of Commerce
Community and Cultural Center
Community Foundation
Community Playhouse
Dennis Kennedy Aquatics Center
Downtown Association
Library
Rotary Club
Sister Cities
SANTA CLARA
County Cities Association
Valley Transportation Authority
Valley Water District
SILICON VALLEY Leadership Forum
SOUTH COUNTY
Regional Wastewater Authority
Bernie Mulligan
“I miss my friend of almost 40 years. He
was truly ‘the Mayor’ wherever he went.
Dennis and I were fortunate to have visited
all five of Morgan Hill’s Sister Cities. We
also share a heritage of Irish descent, and
during our stays in Ireland, Dennis and
I were accepted and treated not just as
friends, but as family. Dennis treated every
person with an egalitarian manner and
the Irish held him close to their hearts. I
received over fifty sympathy emails from
our friends in Ireland honoring my friend.”
“I will miss him for the rest of my life.
In Gaelic we would say, ‘Slainte Dennis’ . . .
cheers to you on your journey, wherever the
afterlife takes you.”
GILROY • MORGAN HILL • SAN MARTIN
JULY / AUGUST 2016
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