2024 -- H 7009

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LC003271

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     STATE OF RHODE ISLAND

IN GENERAL ASSEMBLY

JANUARY SESSION, A.D. 2024

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H O U S E   R E S O L U T I O N

EXTENDING DEEPEST CONDOLENCES ON THE PASSING OF ELEANOR M. SKENYON

     Introduced By: Representatives Shekarchi, Blazejewski, Chippendale, Craven, McEntee,
McNamara, Vella-Wilkinson, Corvese, Azzinaro, and Solomon

     Date Introduced: January 04, 2024

     Referred To: House read and passed

     WHEREAS, It is with sadness that this House of Representatives has learned of the

passing of Eleanor M. Skenyon, the beloved wife of John Skenyon, and the cherished mother of

John Skenyon, our friend and the former House of Representatives Chief of Staff, Leo Skenyon,

and her daughter, Mary-Ellen; and

     WHEREAS, Mrs. Skenyon was born in Tignish, Prince Edward Island, Canada, to

Francis and Mary Barbara Gaudet, the fifth of six children, which included her siblings, Gus,

Ang, Joe, Emmeline, and Alma. As a young girl, her family moved to Rhode Island where she

graduated from Holy Name School and St. Xavier’s Academy; and

     WHEREAS, Upon graduation from high school, Mrs. Skenyon had been recruited for a

position as a commercial artist because of her artistic talents, but chose to attend Rhode Island

College, where she had been awarded a scholarship, and became an elementary school teacher.

She subsequently became a supervisor in the Providence School system, and continued her

education, earning a Master’s Degree in Education. Her career in education culminated with

several years as the Vice Principal of the Henry Barnard School attached to Rhode Island

College; and

     WHEREAS, Above all else in her life, Mrs. Skenyon was devoted to her family. Upon

marrying her husband John in 1943, the couple made their home in Providence and together they

started their family, eventually moving to North Providence, where her husband sadly passed in

1969. In the early 1990s, she moved to Narragansett, where she found comfort, peace, and

fulfilment living by the ocean; and

     WHEREAS, Never one to remain idle, after retiring, Mrs. Skenyon and a fellow teacher

owned and operated “The Teacher’s Room,” a charming school supply store in Johnston. She

also resumed her painting and drawing, creating wonderful watercolors, seascapes and scenes of

the Narragansett area, which were featured in numerous exhibits, including several shows

presented by the South County Art Association in Kingston. Throughout her life she had also

been a devout Catholic and was a devoted communicant of Saint Veronica’s Chapel in

Narragansett for many decades; and

     WHEREAS, In addition to her children, Mrs. Skenyon is survived by her daughter-in-

law, Margaret, her beloved grandchildren, Stephanie, Matthew, and Heather Skenyon, and

Heather’s daughter, great-granddaughter Addison Guthrie, Justin Skenyon, Caitlin Terwilliger

and her husband Ed and their daughter, great-granddaughter Sophie Terwilliger, and Daniel,

Tatiana, Markian, and Alexander Martynetz, as well as many loving nieces and nephews. She was

predeceased by her son-in-law, Myron Martynetz, and her nephew, Charles Sweeney; and

     WHEREAS, Eleanor Skenyon was blessed with a long and glorious life that spanned

more than 103 active and joyous years, surrounded by a loving family and many friends, and she

will be dearly missed by all; now, therefore be it

     RESOLVED, That this House of Representatives of the State of Rhode Island hereby

extends deepest condolences and sympathy to the family and friends of Eleanor M. Skenyon; and

be it further

     RESOLVED, That the Secretary of State be and herby is authorized and directed to

transmit a duly certified copy of this resolution to John Skenyon and Family, Leo Skenyon and

Family, and Mary-Ellen Martynetz and Family.

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