Kerney Laday Sr.'s Obituary
LADAY, SR., KERNEY was born to the late Lillies and Sampson Laday on March 14, 1942 in Ville Platte, LA. He was one of ten children and graduated from James Stephens High School. He married Floradese Thomas, his high school sweetheart, and had three sons from this union. Kerney and Flo experienced 52 loving years together. Kerney, a beloved husband, father, uncle, brother and grandfather passed away on Saturday, September 8, 2012. He received a Bachelor of Science degree in 1965 from Southern University, a Masters degree in Counseling and Psychology from Louisiana State University, and a Master’s Degree in Business Administration from Southern Methodist University. From 1965 to 1968, he served in the U.S. Army Signal Corps and was honorably discharged as a Captain. Kerney began his professional career as the Placement Director for Southern University in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Leveraging this role, he accepted an entry position at the Xerox Corporation. During his career at Xerox, he held many different positions including Vice President/Field Operations, Vice President & Region General Manager and Vice President, National Service, United States Marketing Group. He retired in 1997 after 26 years of service. After a successful career at Xerox, Kerney embarked on a new venture as President of The Laday Company, specializing in management consulting and business development. Kerney served as a director and Chairman of the Board of Texas Health Resources. He also served as a director on the Boards of Rent-A-Center, TD Industries, Inc., The Beck Group, Texas Treasury Safekeeping Trust Company, and Texas Utilities Company. In addition, he served on the boards of many non-profit organization including; United Way of Dallas Foundation, Salesmanship Club of Dallas Foundation, and Bent Tree Country Club. He was a member of the Executive Board of the Cox School of Business, Southern Methodist University, a Life Member of the Board of Directors of the United Way of Metropolitan Dallas and a member of The Dallas Together Forum. He was also a member of the fraternal organizations Alpha Phi Alpha and Sigma Pi Phi, Alpha Epsilon Chapter, where he served faithfully for many years. While Kerney was an exemplary businessman, civic leader and philanthropist, he was most loved and respected for his humanity and extraordinary ability to connect with people. He believed in maintaining a balance in life with respect to mental acuity, physical fitness and spirituality. He was a constant student, continually challenging himself to learn something new to remain relevant and current. He led a very active lifestyle, always finding time for a round of golf. Kerney believed that maintaining a close family was the source of his strength and that the family unit is stronger than any individual could be on their own. Kerney will be greatly missed by his wife Floradese; His three sons and their spouses: Marcus (Collette), Kerney, Jr. (Marcia), and Anthony (Karen); 7 grandchildren: Simone, Jessica, Ryan, Morgan, Michael, Sophia, and Grant; brothers Ernest (Hattie) and Alvin; Sisters: Juanita (Ernest deceased), Ella Joy (Clarence), and Annie Bell (Moses); a host of nephews, nieces, cousins, and other relatives. He was preceded in death by brothers: Bonnie and Calvin; sisters: Mary Lee (Joseph) and Betty. Visitation will be from 6:00-8:00pm on Friday, September 14th at Restland Funeral Home. Services will be held at 11:00am on Saturday, September 15th at Shiloh Missionary Baptist Church.
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