Jacqueline Denny Starr, college professor
Jacqueline Denny Starr, 91, of West Chester, a retired professor of home economics at Cheyney University, died Friday, Jan. 1, of respiratory failure at Cathedral Village in Philadelphia.
Jacqueline Denny Starr, 91, of West Chester, a retired professor of home economics at Cheyney University, died Friday, Jan. 1, of respiratory failure at Cathedral Village in Philadelphia.
Born in Reading, Mrs. Starr was the youngest daughter of Rosannah C. and Harold P. Denny.
Known as "Jackie," Mrs. Starr grew up in West Chester and graduated from West Chester Senior High School. She earned a bachelor of arts degree in home economics from Cheyney University, and a master of arts degree in clothing and textiles from Columbia University.
She held a number of teaching positions before becoming a teacher at Howard High School and then Bancroft Junior High School in Wilmington and then moving to her alma mater, Cheyney University, where she taught home economics for 26 years. Mrs. Starr retired in 1987.
She was a member of Alpha Kappa Alpha Sorority Inc., initiated into Zeta Omega Chapter in 1955, and was a charter and longtime member of Iota Tau Omega Chapter.
She was a member of Club FeJuadims - a women's group - and of the Women's Auxiliary to the Chester County Hospital.
She was devoted to the Church of the Holy Trinity, West Chester, where she served for many years on the altar guild and the vestry.
After retiring from Cheyney, she helped found Sarah's Circle/Trinity Stitchers, a needlework group.
Mrs. Starr loved to entertain and was a good cook. She was a talented designer, adding her touch to stage decorations for graduations and other events. Her leisure time also was filled with bridge, gardening, and travel.
In addition to her daughter, Harriette Lynn Starr, a physician in Philadelphia, Mrs. Starr collected "bonus daughters" - unrelated by blood - who became faithful and loving members of her extended family. "She touched many lives and she will be missed," her family said.
Besides her daughter, Mrs. Starr is survived by a sister; two nephews; and a niece. Her husband, Harry L. Starr, died in 2004 at age 77.
Services were Saturday, Jan. 9.
Donations may be made to the Iota Tau Omega Chapter Scholarship Fund. Checks should be made out to the Pearls of Distinction Foundation, c/o Iota Tau Omega Chapter - AKA Sorority, Box 1815, West Chester, Pa. 19380.
610-313-8102