Obituary of Rebecca Ann Peters

Dr. Rebecca Buckley Peters was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, sister, and friend. She left this world on February 2, 2021, at age 76 after living with Alzheimer’s for many years. She was born to Francis and Beulah Buckley on January 1, 1945, in Hamilton, Ohio. After graduating from Talawanda High School in Oxford, Ohio in 1962 she attended college and married her former husband, Jonathan Kennard. Together, they had three sons: Jeffrey, Bradford and Steven Kennard. She later married Robert Peters and was stepmother to his children. She received her undergraduate degree in 1977 and her master’s degree in 1978 from Eastern New Mexico University and spent her early career as a high school English teacher at Fort Sumner High School in Fort Sumner, New Mexico. After moving to Nashville in 1991, she served as program director and mental health specialist at the Dede Wallace Mental Health Center. While pursuing her Ph. D. at Vanderbilt University, she served as an adjunct professor at the Peabody College at Vanderbilt University, Tennessee State University, Middle Tennessee State University, and Aquinas College. After receiving her doctorate degree, she became a full-time instructor of psychology and education at Aquinas College for more than a decade impacting thousands of students. Late in her career, she also taught as an adjunct professor at the University of Phoenix and Argosy University. She was a member of the Association of Supervision and Curriculum Development, Council for Exceptional Children, Council for Children with Behavioral Disorders, and TACTE. Rebecca loved to travel and shared many adventures with her family including trips to Paris, Ireland, the Baltic Sea, Canada and Alaska. She was an avid reader and enjoyed spending time at the local library where the staff knew her by name. Rebecca was an excellent host and her love for southwestern cuisine was only rivaled by her love for her sons and grandchildren. She also enjoyed volunteering with Room in the Inn for many years. She enjoyed attending mass at the Aquinas Chapel, the Cathedral of Incarnation, Saint Ignatius of Antioch Catholic Church and Saint Henry Church. She is survived by her brother Patrick Buckley (Helen), brother in law Richard Bruck (Linda), her sons Jeffrey Kennard (Melissa), Bradford Kennard (Jennifer), Steven Kennard (Tasha), her stepchildren Polly Dendy (Mac), Penny Huerta (Joey), Patty Neff, Robert Peters (Maria) and Paige Wheeler (Mike) and their children and grandchildren, her grandchildren Conor Kennard, Olivia Kennard, Isabella Kennard, Emerson Kennard, Charles Kennard, Annelynne Kennard, her nephews Christopher Bruck (Paula) and Brian Buckley and niece Kerry Buckley (Jami) and their children. She is preceded in death by her parents Francis and Buelah Buckley, her sister Linda Bruck, her nephew Steven Bruck and her husband Robert Peters. A funeral mass is scheduled for 1:00 pm on Saturday, February 27, 2021, at the St. Henry Church in Nashville, Tennessee. In lieu of flowers, please donate to the Alzheimer’s Association or Room in the Inn in her honor.