Elinor Elizabeth (Kilkenny) Kniffin
RIPON, CA – Elinor Elizabeth (Kilkenny) Kniffin of Ripon CA passed away peacefully at home on April 3, 2021. She was born on May 17, 1926 in Pittsburg, PA. to the late Hilary William Kilkenny and late Gladys (Vawter) Kilkenny.
Elinor graduated from Marywood School for Girls in Orange, CA on D-Day, 1944.
She attended nurse’s training at Mercy Hospital in San Diego, CA for one year before moving to Yuma, AZ with her family where she met the love of her life, her husband, the late Donald Eugene Kniffin, at the Army Air Corp Base. Following their marriage on June 8, 1946, they moved to Simsbury, CT where they would live and raise their three children.
In 1964 Elinor graduated Summa Cum Laude from Central Connecticut State College. She taught elementary school in Simsbury while earning her Master’s Degree from the University of Hartford in 1968, after which the family relocated to Tustin, CA. She subsequently received her CA state credential to practice school psychology from California State University, Long Beach. Elinor was employed by the Santa Ana Unified School District in CA and the Paradise Valley School District in Phoenix, AZ prior to her retirement at the age 82, at which time she moved to Ripon, CA. to be near family.
Elinor was a member of Phi Delta Kappa and the International School Psychology Association, and several other professional and social organizations. She volunteered with CASA and her parish. She enjoyed reading, playing bridge, traveling and valued time with her family as her highest priority.
Elinor is survived by her beloved children, Hilary Arleth (Karl) of Bonita Springs, FL., Sharon Filippi (Dana) of Ripon, CA, and Richard Kniffin (Kelly) of Durango, CO., six grandchildren, Matthew Arleth (Marianne), Donald Arleth (Agata), Dayna Sisneros (Michael), Bryan Filippi (Janet), Kendall Kniffin and Brooke Kniffin, and nine great-grandchildren. She also leaves her beloved sister, Joan Williamson, of Phoenix, AZ and several much-loved nieces and nephews.
A Mass of Christian Burial will be said at Holy Family Catholic Church in Modesto, CA. Burial will be in the family plot in Granby, CT. In lieu of flowers, the family requests memorial donations be made to the Children’s Diabetes Foundation, 3025 S. Parker Road, Suite 110, Aurora, CO. 80014.