08 December 1938 – 07 December 2024
Sr. Bernie was born in Boston, MA and baptized Mary Ellen.  Her early schooling was in Somerville MA, coincidently where MMM came to live later.  After leaving school she worked as a dental assistant for a short period before joining MMM in Winchester MA.
After her initial religious formation period, she went to Ireland to study Nursing.  When she graduated, she won the top grade in the whole of Ireland!  But she did not stay in Ireland long.  Once her training as a nurse and midwife were completed, she travelled to Tanzania.  Her first mission was in Dareda Hospital.  After a short break to upgrade her nursing to degree level in Boston, she was then assigned to Ethiopia.  There she worked in Gambo for a short period.

By 1977, Sr. Bernie was back in the USA. After helping in Vocation Promotion work for a year, she found her life’s work when she moved to Appalachia and Virginia in 1978.

MMM came to the Appalachian Mountains at the request of the Richmond Catholic Diocese. Sister Bernie started the program when she began dispensing health care and a kind touch out of her Volkswagen Beetle. In 1980, the Health Wagon was founded by Sr. Bernie Kenny. St. Mary’s Hospital provided a valuable partnership and sponsored the program for over twenty-five years. In 1983, Sr. Bernie upgraded her skills at the Medical College of Virgina becoming a registered Family Nurse Practitioner.
Although Sr. Bernie turned over the reins of the organization in December 2005 her heart and her life remained firmly embedded in Appalachia until she died.

Sister. Bernie also initiated the invitation to the Remote Area Medical project (RAM) coming to the region, an annual three-day open air medical clinic drawing people from the surrounding counties. Sister Bernie continued to use her knowledge of the area, her friendships, and her sills as nurse-practitioner and massage therapist to open up spaces for healing to take place among the Appalachian people. Sister Bernie said, “It’s not about pills. In most health care the emotional part is ignored. Health care is social; it’s a way of identifying what’s inside a person.”

Sister Bernie also co-authored a book with Tauna Gulley, a nursing instructor for the University of Virginia in Wise VA, that explores the concept of care and caring among residents in central Appalachia.

Sister Bernie became seriously ill in early December 2024, and she was moved to Pikeville KY for medical care.  She died there peacefully on December 7th, just hours before her 86th birthday.  Her funeral Mass was held in Clintwood VA and there was a further celebration of her life in Somerville MA.  She is buried in the Holy Cross Cemetery in Malden MA.