Dr. Kenn E. Harding

Dr. Kenn E. Harding, age 80, passed away January 1, 2023 after a brief illness with his wife, Tammy, and daughter, Laura, at his side. He was loved and respected by everyone who knew him for his kindness and acceptance.

Kenn was born October 2, 1942 in Ponca City, Oklahoma to Vernon and Merle Harding and was raised on a farming/ranching operation in Osage County. He began showing cattle at 9 years of age through 4H and continued showing livestock and participating in numerous 4H projects through high school. His senior year of high school he showed both the Grand and Reserve Grand Champion Steers at the County Fair. During high school he developed an intense interest in chemistry and participated in Continental Classroom, an educational television program broadcast by NBC in the early morning, targeted at teachers and college students. Kenn traveled to Oklahoma State University to take tests but, since he was only a high school student, he could not receive credit for the work. Kenn graduated Valedictorian of his class from Burbank High School in 1960.

Kenn attended Oklahoma State University and earned a BS in Chemistry in 1964 where he was President of Delta Chi Fraternity. He completed his Ph.D. in Chemistry in 3.5 years at Stanford University, under the guidance of William S. Johnson, studying the synthesis and cyclization of interesting polyolefinic substrates. Post-doctoral studies on the synthesis of prostaglandins were conducted with E. J. Corey, future Nobel laureate, at Harvard University.

Kenn joined the faculty at Texas A&M University in 1969 as an Assistant Professor of Chemistry. His research interests continued to be related to cationic cyclizations and he mentored numerous undergraduate and graduate students. He became a tenured Associate Professor in 1976, the same year he met his wife, Tammy, who began graduate school in chemistry at TAMU.

During the 1985-1986 academic year Kenn served as a Program Manager at the National Science Foundation in Washington, D.C.

Kenn’s service to the Department of Chemistry was noteworthy. He served for a number of years as Graduate Student Advisor and then shepherded the growing Undergraduate Organic Chemistry Laboratory Programs for over 10 years. He was promoted to Professor during this time and retired in January 2017.

Kenn met his wife Tammy on a TAMU ski trip in January, 1976. They immediately discovered a common interest in chemistry and married in December of 1976. Kenn was an invaluable support to Tammy as she pursued a Master’s and Ph. D. in Chemistry at TAMU. They enjoyed sharing their research successes and challenges during those years.

Kenn and Tammy’s daughter, Laura, was born in October of 1986. Their focus over the next several years was ensuring Laura had the best doctors and professionals assisting in her development. This assured that Laura was able to attend mainstream classes throughout her education.

In the fall of 1998, Tammy’s friend, Christine Larsen, arranged for Laura to receive a donated Texas Longhorn heifer to halter-break and exhibit. Kenn was involved every step of the way and Laura exhibited her heifer at her first Texas Longhorn Show in November. Laura exhibited her heifer and one of Christine’s at two more shows in the spring, before heading to the Texas Longhorn Breeders of America World Expo in June. Laura exhibited Christine’s heifer to Reserve Grand Champion in the Youth Show and was named Newcomer of the Year, for which she received another donated heifer. That was the start of Rafter H Longhorns.

Kenn liked to say that he “reverted to my adolescence” getting back into the cattle business. However, it was truly the joy of his life. Until Laura graduated from high school, the focus with the cattle was raising quality Texas Longhorns that Laura could exhibit in youth Texas Longhorn shows. Her senior year of high school in 2006 she exhibited 12 animals at the World Expo and her steer, Hullabaloo, was Youth Grand Champion.

For a number of years Kenn and Laura only took their prize Trophy Steers, Ol’ Sarge and Hullabaloo, to shows. Both steers were saddle broke and Kenn and Laura took them to a number of parades.

In 2015 Laura decided she wanted to get back out on the Texas Longhorn show circuit, so Kenn and Laura began selecting weanling calves for halter breaking. They enjoyed some success showing haltered animals, but discovered that exhibiting in Non-haltered classes meant lots less daily work. In 2018 Rafter H Longhorns exhibited the Youth Grand Champion Steer and the Grand Champion Mature Non-Haltered Female at the World Expo.

Kenn was also very interested in genealogy. That interest led him to become a member of the Sons of the American Revolution and Sons of Confederate Veterans. He served for several years as the Secretary of the Independence Chapter, SAR. He enjoyed the many trips he made with Tammy and Laura visiting Civil War battlefields with Hood’s Texas Brigade Association Reactivated.

Kenn was an active member of the Brazos Corral, Westerners International. He served as Sheriff and as Recorder of Marks and Brands. He cherished the friendships he made with the members of this group.

Kenn has been a member of St. Thomas Episcopal Church since 1987. He served on the Vestry and was Senior Warden. He was a founding member of the Tuesday Morning Prayer Breakfast, a dedicated group that has met for over 30 years. He enjoyed serving as a Chalice Bearer and Lay Eucharistic Minister. In the summer of 2022, Kenn, Tammy and Laura joined the Compass Rose Society and, in the fall, traveled to London for the Annual General Meeting with the Archbishop of Canterbury.

Kenn was preceded in death by his parents. He is survived by his wife of 46 years, Tammy H. Tiner; his daughter, Laura Ames Harding; sister Patricia Harding Cook and husband Henry; sister Linda Harding Cottle and husband Rick; brother-in-law Wayne Tiner and wife Roxanne; sister-in-law Cassandrea Hager; brother-in-law Kenneth Tiner; and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins.

A Celebration of Life Service will be held at 1 pm Saturday, January 7, 2023 at St. Thomas Episcopal Church, 906 George Bush Drive, College Station. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to the St. Thomas Episcopal Church Trust.