Joe Kennedy

Joe Kennedy, 84, of Amarillo, TX passed away on November 6, 2022.

The family will receive friends from 5:00 P.M. – 6:30 P.M., Thursday, November 10, 2022, at Boxwell Brothers Funeral Home, 2800 Paramount Blvd. Graveside services will be at 11:00 A.M., Saturday, November 12, 2022, at the Levelland Cemetery in Levelland, TX. Arrangements are by Boxwell Brothers Funeral Directors, Amarillo.

Joe was born in Levelland, TX on February 16, 1938, to Billie Jo and Mermon Kennedy. He married Joan Huff in Levelland, TX on April 14, 1956.

Joe graduated in 1970 with a Bachelor of Science degree from West Texas State University.  He made a living and paid for his education by shoeing and training horses.  In 1977, Joe changed careers and was employed by the First National Bank of Amarillo, where he became the Vice President Trust Officer for the farm and ranch division.

Joe was most proud of his family and enjoyed spending time with them during family cookouts, where he especially liked to grill and churn homemade ice cream.  He was also a fan of fishing, and upon many of his trips would enjoy a fish fry with his family and friends.

He really enjoyed the Cowboy Church, where he would take his chuck wagon to cookouts, and often make his specialty of Dutch oven peach cobbler.

He had a great love for animals, especially horses.  He was a member of Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, and an avid fan of sports including rodeos and football.  He always fondly remembered his High School football years at Levelland, where he was known for returning kickoffs and punts for a touchdown in every game.

Joe had a passion for flying airplanes and had successfully built and flew two experimental aircrafts.  He would reminisce about how his father also flew airplanes, and how he felt close to his dad while he flew.

Another of his passions was his farm and ranch work.  He was always building things, such as the great room in his house with a big fireplace, or many of his barn structures.  It was hard not to find him at home on his tractor as he plowed the field, or lovingly tended to his vegetable garden, from which the produce found its way to the family meals, known as “Farm Dinners.”

He was a member of Pleasant Valley Methodist Church.

He was preceded in death by his parents, and brothers, Bob Kennedy, and Jimmy Kennedy.

Survivors include his wife, Joan Kennedy, of the home; son, Ron Kennedy and wife Linda, of Amarillo, TX; and grandchildren, Laine Linch and husband Cole, of Amarillo, TX, and Kaylin Kennedy, of Amarillo, TX.