Geraldine G. Kemp

Our beloved Geri passed away on December 3, 2024 at the age of 79 in Newburgh, N.Y., after a prolonged illness. 

She was born on November 11, 1945, in the Bronx, N.Y. Her parents, the much loved and missed Arthur and Blondell Moore, predeceased her in July of 2000. She attended and graduated from Walton High School in the Bronx; she also attended Bronx Community College. Geri and her former spouse, Professor Arnold Kemp (deceased) had one child together, Ayanna Kemp Cameron, Esq. who they adored.

Geri worked as a Surgical Assistant in the late 1960s/early 1970s. She then gained her first experience in job development and recruitment when she worked for the HARYOU-ACT (Harlem Youth Opportunities Unlimited), a Federally funded organization that worked to increase opportunities in education and employment for young people in Harlem, N.Y. She was part of a team that mentored, trained, and placed youth in private-sector entry-level jobs. She built upon her experience and became an Executive Recruiter for private employment companies located in mid-town Manhattan during the '80s into the '90s. She excelled at her profession and garnered Fortune 500 companies as clients.

In 1990 Geri left New York for Atlanta, Georgia. She was enterprising, she utilized her multi level marketing skills while selling Avon. She also expanded her interest in the hospitality service industry while working for Marriott. After her parents passed in 2000, she moved to their home in St. Paul, South Carolina, where she became an entrepreneur. She opened “GK Business and Travel Center” and then “ The Coffee Shop” in Summerton, SC. She also worked as a substitute teacher for the Clarendon County public schools shortly before falling ill.

She followed her family’s legacy of volunteerism and activism. While living in New York she served as PTA president of her daughter’s elementary school, The Emerson School. She also served on the Greater Harlem Chamber of Commerce’s Harlem Week Committee. While living in St. Paul and Manning S.C., she served as a Mentor Supporter for the Clarendon County Tutor-Mentor Program, Volunteer Reader for the Rolling Readers of Clarendon County, a Member-Supporter for the Animal Shelter of Clarendon County, also known as A Second Chance Animal Shelter of Clarendon County. She served as an Executive Board Member of the N.A.A.C.P-Clarendon County Branch, where she was on various committees such as the Freedom Fund, Jubilee Celebration, Briggs v. Elliot, and Commemorative Celebration committees. She also served as NAACP Chairperson for local youth pageants. Furthermore, she was a Founding Member of and Parliamentarian for The Citizens for Improving Education and Improvement, founded in Clarendon County.

She leaves her daughter, Ayanna Kemp Cameron, Esq. and son-in-law, Dean B. Cameron, Esq. of the Town of Crawford, N.Y. Her beloved sister Sheri Moore Change of Atlanta, G.A. (husband- Michael Change (deceased)), her aunt Kathleen McElveen of Summerton, S.C. (husband Leroy McElveen) and her aunt Loretta Pollard of Summerton, S.C. (husband Henry Pollard (deceased)), and a host of nieces, nephews, cousins, and close friends, who she loved immensely.

Brendan and Thomas Flynn provided cremation care at Oxford Hills Crematory, Inc., Chester, NY 10918.

A Life Celebration will be held on December 14, 2024, at Flynn Funeral & Cremation Memorial Centers, 139 Stage Road, Monroe, NY 10950, from 11:00 AM to 1:00 PM.

For those unable to attend in person, the service will be live-streamed. You may join the live stream here https://my.gather.app/remember/geraldine-kemp

In lieu of flowers, please make donations in her name to one of the following organizations: The NAACP Legal Defense Fund, the United Negro College Fund, The National Museum of African American History and Culture, and The Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. 

The family entrusted Geraldine's care to the Flynn Family and Flynn Funeral & Cremation Memorial Center staff. Please feel free to leave a condolence for the family to share.