Obituary of John P. McKenna

Griffin, GA - John P. McKenna passed away on February 3, 2022. Jack was the son of John and Carmella McKenna. He was born on October 11, 1938 at Brady Maternity Hospital, Albany, NY Jack was the beloved husband of Mary Davita Manning McKenna for 59 years and a much loved dad to John P McKenna III (deceased), Kevin Michael McKenna (deceased), Brian Anthony McKenna of Griffin, GA, Sharon Seim Heup (Mark) of Sandy Springs, GA, Daniel John McKenna MD (Holly) of Fort Myers, FL, and Matthew David Mckenna (Britta) of Buffalo, NY. He was grandfather to Connor and Taylor Seim, Keelin and Evan McKenna, Nicholas and Kara Mckenna and Meghan and Claire McKenna.
He was predeceased by his sister Patricia Myers and brother-in-law, Joseph Myers MD. Jack is also survived by three nephews and one niece and ten grand-nieces and nephews.
Jack was a graduate of Vincention Institute, Albany in 1956 and then graduated in 1960 from the University of Notre Dame, where he received a Bachelor of Business Administration degree and was commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant in the U.S. Army. He completed his army service in 1970 as a Captain. After graduation from Notre Dame, Jack served in several local and national offices with the Notre Dame Alumni Association, including serving on the National Alumni Board of Directors, and never lost his dedication to Notre Dame. He also received his MPA from SUNY in Albany, NY.
Jack was a member of the Notre Dame Marching Band for four years and was proud that his five children followed him as members of the Band.
Upon his return to Albany, NY, Jack joined the State of New York where, over the years, he served as Assistant Executive Director of the State Board of Equalization and Assessment, Administrative Director of the Division of Parole, Director of Human Resources for the Department of Social Services, Director of the Division of Examinations for the Department of Civil Service, Assistant Director in the Governor’s Office of Employee Relations, where he wrote the states’ performance evaluation system and Deputy Commissioner for the Department of Taxation and Finance. He retired from state service in 1993 after 32 years.
When Jack and Mary Davita’s children were young, they moved to Voorheesville, NY, where they attended school. During this time Jack was president of the school board for ten years. While on the board, as a member of the Friends of Music program, he wrote a grant for the summer music program. As president of Kiwanis, he established the baseball and softball programs for boys and girls.
Jack was an active member of the Catholic parishes where his family and he lived. While in Voorheesville, he served for many years as the president of the parish council and headed the committee for the building of the parish school and renovation of the church.
Jack enjoyed playing basketball, tennis and golf. He loved playing his saxophone, with his children playing their instruments. The McKenna’s house was always filled with friends and relatives enjoying fun times.
A Memorial Mass will be celebrated on Saturday, May 21, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Matthew’s Church, 25 Mountainview St., Voorheesville. Interment will be in Memory Gardens Cemetery in Colonie.  In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to the Notre Dame Band, PO Box 1023, Notre Dame, IN 46556.