W. Denzel & Ernestine A. Kee Scholarship Fund
W. Denzel and Ernestine A. Kee
Scholarship Fund
TYPE OF FUND: Scholarship DATE ESTABLISHED: Jan. 6, 2000
PURPOSE: To honor the memory of W. Denzel Kee (1912-1999) and Ernestine Sine Kee (1916-1992) by providing scholarships in their name, with a preference for students first from the Hambleton, WV area, second from the Hendricks, WV area, and lastly from the Parsons, WV area. If there are no eligible students from these three communities, then any Tucker County High School graduating senior may apply.
DISTRIBUTION: Selection of recipients will be made by the TCF Scholarship Committee, with approval by the board of directors. Mr. Kee wishes to be notified each year if there are not sufficient investment earnings to fund a scholarship at least at the $400 – $500 level.
VARIANCE POWER: If, in the judgment of the TCF Board of Directors, the restrictions and conditions of the fund become unnecessary, incapable of fulfillment or inconsistent with the charitable needs of the community, the TCF Board of Directors maintains the right to modify the terms of this fund.
FUNDING: Initial funding of $5000, plus $400 to be used for the 2000 scholarship was provided by John W. Kee.
BACKGROUND: Ernest Sine Kee, a lifelong resident of Hambleton, WV was born on October 4, 1916. Her parents were Ernest C. and Alice Mumaw Sine. Ernestine graduated from Parsons High School in 1934 and married W. Denzel Kee in l935. She was active throughout her entire lifetime in her community and church affairs. She served as secretary-treasurer of the Tucker County Investment Company, was a member of the Hambleton United Methodist Church and also served as vice-president of the Hambleton United Methodist Church Women’s Society. She died in July 1992.
“How do you put into words all of her accomplishments,” her son, John, said. “She was the pillar of the family and inspired all seven of us to be successful, self-sufficient and good citizens. Six of us are college graduates – four teachers, a CPA and an engineer. Dad was very instrumental in our success, but it was Mother who made sure we were. She kept the home, taught us to be good citizens and Christians. I, personally, owe a lot of my success to her inspiration and guidance.”
William Denzel Kee, Sr. was born in Parsons, WV, on June 6, 1912. He was the son of James Woodley and Lillian Merle Adams Kee. He graduated from Parsons High School in 1930. He was also a graduate of the Perry Business School at Brunswick, Georgia (1932). He completed several banking courses with A.I.B., the Mellon School of Banking and the West Virginia Bankers Association. He married Ernestine Sine in 1935 and resided in Hambleton, WV, until his death in February 1999. He was a veteran of WWII, having served as a Store Keeper 2nd Class in the United States Navy at the Little Creek Amphibious Base in Little Creek, Virginia.
William also worked for the former Armour Leather Company of Parsons, but spent the majority of his career in the banking industry. He served as teller, bookkeeper, cashier and vice president and director of the former Tucker County Bank until his retirement in 1982. He was president and manager of the Tucker county Investment Company. He served as secretary of the Parsons Chamber of Commerce during which time he was instrumental in obtaining the Kingsford Charcoal Company for the Parsons area. He also served as treasurer and fund-raiser for the Farming For Better Living Council, served as chairman of several Red Cross fund drives and was active with the Boy Scouts of America. He was a member and trustee of the Hambleton United Methodist Church and a member of the Pythagorean Lodge 128, A.F. and A.M. at Parsons.
Ernestine and W. Denzel Kee were the parents of seven children: Alice Merle Kee Ring of Milwaukee, Wisconsin; William Denzel (Bill) Kee, II of Quakertown, Pennsylvania; John W. Kee of Charleston, WV; James Michael (Jim) Kee of Buckhannon, WV; Robert Ernest (Bob) Kee of Franklin, Virginia; Ernestine Anne Kee Munford of Smithfield, Virginia; and Kathy Lynn Kee McCune of Hambleton, WV.