OBITUARY: Genelle Bishop

Carolyn Genelle Bishop passed away peacefully, at her home in Boston, Massachusetts, on March 1, 2024, just one week past her 88th birthday celebration.

Born in the small town of Goose Creek, Texas, to Frederic and Martha Lee Fenton, Genelle enjoyed a childhood filled with tennis, waterskiing, and family camping trips. She moved to Houston as a young woman and worked at Humble Oil (later Exxon), and during the heyday of the Apollo and Skylab missions, she worked at NASA as a geological draftsperson.

In the early 1980s, Genelle moved to Massachusetts and embraced her new life as a member of the LGBTQ+ community. Whether in Boston or at her place in Provincetown, with her then-partner Deborah Kerr, she was the life of every party. Blessed with an easy Southern charm and boundless energy, she treated everyone as an old friend, even those she'd just met. She was passionate about the fight for marriage equality, progressive politics and candidates, the Red Sox, and closest to her heart, Fenway Health.

Over the years, she marched in countless Pride parades. She was lovingly cared for by her brother, David Fenton, and her daughter, Katherine (née Todd) Bishop; Genelle's family would like to thank the hospice team from Good Shepherd and her devoted caregivers at Springhouse. Along with David and Katherine, Genelle also leaves her brother, Larry Fenton and wife Barbara; dear nephew, Benjamin Fenton and wife Emily, and their young son, John, who brought her so much joy these past months. She leaves, too, her extended family of wonderful friends.

Later in the spring, in lieu of a funeral, there will be a tea dance fundraiser-just as Genelle wanted-to benefit Fenway Health's LGBTQIA+ Aging Project. Details will be forthcoming. To make a donation in her memory https://support.fenwayhealth.org/page/64681/donate/1 or mail to Fenway Health, Development Office, 1340 Boylston Street, Boston, MA 02215.