Melvin Lewis Kenney was born July 30, 1928 to Walter S. “Butch” Kenney and Tomae (McInturf) in Stafford, OK and passed away Thursday, August 9, 2018 in the Corn Heritage Village Home in Weatherford.

Melvin was raised in Stafford where he graduated from high school in 1945. He married Dorothy Vineyard soon after high school. He was employed with Rosery Farms and lived in Clinton for a short time before moving to Tulsa. He worked for the Internal Revenue Service but soon enlisted in the U.S. Army in 1946. He spent a year in Japan and served with the military police. After his honorable discharge, he returned to Custer County, and he married Peggy Groce on March 9, 1955 in Clinton. They made their first home in the Neptune area of Clinton where he owned and operated the “Y” Restaurant. They later moved into town, and he became employed with the Oklahoma Highway Patrol as their “Radio Man”. He later transferred to the Department of Public Safety.

The Kenney’s moved to the Foss Lake area where they lived until 2002. They later made their home in Fairview. Peggy preceded him in death in 2004.

After his retirement he continued working in a civilian status for the Computer Communications Inc. (CCI). They were a California company that did message switch and workstations for law enforcement and airline reservations systems. Melvin did workstation user training and wrote the training manual that CCI provided to Department of Public Safety/OLETS for statewide use.

He was married to Joyce Lacey in November of 2006, and they made their home in Clinton. She preceded him in death in 2016.

He was a member of the Custer City First Christian Church, Oklahoma Highway Patrol Retired Troopers, and Men’s Breakfast Club. He enjoyed cooking, fishing, and gardening; telling stories, Thunder basketball, playing chicken foot and spending time at the lake and most of all spending time with his friends and family.

He is also preceded in death by a son in law, Jim Schoeppel, daughter in law, Coleen Vineyard, sister, Ellen Gill and three brothers, Jess Kenney, Delbert Kenney and Carroll Kenney.

He is survived by his two daughters, Vickie Lynn Kenney, Weatherford and Kay Schoeppel, Fairview, OK, his son, Dale Vineyard, Eakly,OK ; sister, Vaunceil Cox, Elk City,OK.
He is also survived by two grandchildren, Chacey Schoeppel, OKC, OK and Terry Vineyard and his wife, Karin, and three great-grandchildren, Amy Renee Askew, Sara Wilson and Mason Dale Vineyard and a special friend, Lawrence “Cactus” Sitting Bear, Weatherford.

Funeral Services will be held 2:00 P.M., Monday in the First Christian Church.