He worked with many organizations in his four decades in Morgan Hill
Published in the April 13-26, 2016 issue of Morgan Hill Life
By Marty Cheek
Photo courtesy Matthew Kennedy
Dennis Kennedy was involved with the Morgan Hill Aquatic Foundation as well as the MH Community Foundation and other nonprofits.
During four decades of public service, Dennis Kennedy earned much respect as a six-term mayor of Morgan Hill as well as many other elected and appointed offices. But the public servant also had a passion for helping nonprofit organizations in the South Valley region enhance the quality of life for many residents.
Among the groups that he was involved with were the South Valley Symphony, helping to support the art of concert music through the Friends of the South Valley Symphony, said his close friend Jill Kirk who worked with him on fundraising for the symphony.
“He loved the music and he loved the people in the orchestra and the fact it was local. He especially loved that it was open for free to children,” she said. “He wanted Morgan Hill to know there is a symphony in the South Valley and it’s a good symphony and people should enjoy the concerts.”
Another passion of Kennedy’s was enhancing the quality of life and the business environment in downtown Morgan Hill. After leaving the mayoral office, he joined the Morgan Hill Downtown Association’s board of directors, serving as the president at one point.
BookSmart co-owner Brad Jones remembers how hard Kennedy worked on various projects and helped give the downtown merchants a voice in the city for issues that impacted them.
“Dennis loved Morgan Hill but he was especially fond of downtown. He spent a large part of his life enjoying downtown and trying to make it a better place,” Jones said. “As mayor and as a member of the Morgan Hill Downtown Association board, Dennis was always thinking of how to create the best downtown possible.”
Kennedy was an engineer by trade, so he always took a hard look at all angles of an issue before making a decision, Jones said.
“I never once saw Dennis make a rash decision. He always had what was best for the downtown and the community as whole on his mind when deciding what path to take,” he said.
Kennedy joined the Rotary Club of Morgan Hill in 2003 and was well respected by the members for his sense of humor and fun personality, said Roger Knopf, a fellow Rotarian. Although he was not active on the club’s board, he would participate in various meeting events.
“Dennis was involved in Rotary and touched many, many elements,” he said. “That’s what made him community-centric. Many of us are involved in our community, but Dennis was ultimate in his involvement in the community. He touched many organizations. He was always respected as a strong leader in the community.”
Kennedy was a visionary who would plant a seed and encourage other people to nurture it and cultivate it, Knopf said. He came up with the idea for the Morgan Hill Community Foundation and got it started with a $10,000 grant from the city.
“He got things going. He was an idea guy,” said Knopf who was on the original board of directors for the foundation. “Dennis was really the driving force. He was a delegator, which is a great trait. He was off planting seeds and other people came along and cultivated them, so it was a great combination.”
Kennedy’s love of swimming made it natural for him to get involved with the Aquatic Foundation, said Danean Smith, a president of the nonprofit group. He helped shape a combined partnership of year-round aquatic programs with the Morgan Hill City Recreation Department and the Morgan Hill Aquatic Foundation.
Other nonprofits that Kennedy was involved in include the Morgan Hill Sister Cities Committee, the Silicon Valley Land Conservancy and the Silicon Valley American Leadership Forum.
