Harold and Elizabeth Kehne were longtime educators in Frederick County. They positively influenced countless students and believed in the power of education to help shape young people’s lives. A fund in their memory at The Community Foundation of Frederick County honors their legacy by providing support to students pursuing a career path similar to theirs.
Mr. Kehne graduated from Frederick High School and served in the United States Army as a medic during World War II. He was a gifted mechanic who owned Kehne’s Citgo at 13th and East Streets in Frederick where he specialized in foreign car repair. He later sold his business and attended University of Maryland, College Park where he earned bachelor’s and master’s degrees in education. He then taught at Middletown High School, West Frederick Middle School, and New Market Middle School before retiring in 1986. Mr. Kehne was always involved in his community and during retirement he continued with his love of farming and was an active member of Golden Tones, Frederick County Recreation Council’s Senior Chorus, Frederick County Retired Teachers Association, and American Legion Francis Scott Key Post 11.
Mrs. Kehne was a graduate of Frederick High School and State Teachers College at Towson (now Towson University). She later earned a master’s degree from University of Maryland, College Park. She was a tireless advocate for special needs students and taught for more than three decades at several Frederick County schools. She spent most of her career as a teacher at Rock Creek School, where she retired from in 1986. Like her husband, she was also active in the community and was involved in Frederick City Recreation Council and served as a volunteer tutor with Literacy Council of Frederick County.
In 2015, to honor the memory of his parents, David Kehne and his husband Robert Funk established The Harold D. and Elizabeth S. Kehne Scholarship Fund with the Community Foundation. The fund’s purpose is to provide scholarships to graduates of Frederick High School or Governor Thomas Johnson High School pursuing a career in education. Preference is given but not limited to students attending Towson University, University of Maryland, College Park, or one of these educational institutions’ extension campuses. Since the fund was created, it has helped students pursue careers in education just as the Kehnes did.
The Kehnes had strong work ethics, believed in service to others, and knew the value of education in helping develop young people into self-sufficient citizens. The fund in their memory at the Community Foundation honors their work as educators and the work of their colleagues in Frederick County. It will help support students pursuing careers in education for generations to come.