Earl’s Obituary Earle Dennis Kipp (Dennis or Denny to his friends) died at the age of 71 on Saturday, May 11, 2019 at Saratoga Hospital in Saratoga Springs, New York. He was born on August 7, 1947 in Schenectady, New York. The only child of Earle D. Kipp and Doris Cummings, Dennis grew up in the Altamont/Schenectady area of the state.
He attended SUNY New Paltz where he obtained both a BS and MA degree in education. More importantly, during these college years, he met and fell in love with Susan Finkelberg, also a student at the school. They began teaching in 1969, were married in 1970, and together forged careers in elementary education.
After a tenure of over three decades in the Coxsackie-Athens Central School District, Dennis retired in 2002, but he never slowed-down. He continued to impact the lives of many diverse groups of people. His passion for, and encyclopedic knowledge of automobiles, led him to the Saratoga Automobile Museum in 2004.
There, he volunteered in many capacities including researching, writing, and editing exhibit materials and publications as well as securing autos for different exhibits, shows, and other events. Most of all, Dennis relished interacting with museum guests. He was equally comfortable talking “shop” with members of an international car club, a fifth-grade class, or a delegation of the Red Hats Society.
He and Susan moved to Saratoga in 2006 and he quickly became an integral part of the volunteer corps. He was honored for his thousands of hours of dedicated service. Next to his family and his love of automobiles, film was another of Dennis’ many passions.
From his earliest years marveling at movies shown at Proctors and the Palace Theatre in Schenectady, he embraced every aspect of film from its rich history to the smallest technical nuance. He enjoyed lecturing on the subject, particularly areas not often examined. “Impressionist Films of Germany Between the World Wars”, was one of many topics he examined.
For several years, Dennis enjoyed giving talks at the Brotherhood Breakfasts held at his son’s temple, Congregation Gates of Heaven. He also connected with the SUNY Empire State College Academy of Lifelong Learning where, for six years, he taught a film appreciation course often focusing on popular and off-beat genres. All his classes were filled to capacity with loyal students who always clamored for more.
Dennis shared these and other facets of his life with his wife and family including his son, Jonathan, his daughter-in-law, Rita, his cousins, Diane Pinelle of Vero Beach, Florida, and James Cummings of Ballston Lake, New York, and his beloved granddaughter, Erin. He was a caring and giving husband, father, and grandfather. His friends, students, and colleagues alike marveled at this superb intellect, razor-sharp wit, and his boundless generosity.
Rabbi Jonathan Rubenstein of Temple Sinai in Saratoga Springs, at the close of a memorial service, commented on the importance of keeping Dennis alive in minds and hearts of those he touched. He said, “…Even though the credits at the end of Dennis’s film are rolling through our minds, the final words on the screen of his life will not be ‘The End’, but rather ‘To be Continued. ’” Online remembrances and condolences can be made at www.
burkefuneralhome.com.
If you found any mistakes, or you would like to add/remove to this obituary, please contact us by email: info@obituary.memorial. We never ask money for this.
