Ailene Boyd

In Loving Memory of Ailene Elizabeth Boyd

Ailene Elizabeth Boyd, a beloved sister, mother, grandmother and great grandmother, went to heaven on January 30, 2024. She was 92 years old. Ailene left behind a legacy of family, spirituality and just the right amount of style and sass. She passed away peacefully in her sleep after a day surrounded by her close family and friends.

Born on October 20, 1931, in Lincoln Nebraska, Ailene Elizabeth was the daughter of Walter Steven Kernes and Alta Ruther Draper. She was sister to LaDonna Wynn and Doyle Kernes. She delighted her family with stories of a childhood spent doing chores with a dedicated mother and hardworking father, playful antics with her brother, and time spent on the family farm in Dawson, Nebraska. Her summers were filled with milking cows, mowing hay, and spending time in the fields until the cows came home—literally—-she rode horseback and brought the cows home each night. Having the voice of an angel, she started singing in the church choir with a solo on Easter Sunday at age four and never stopped. Her love of music was clearly evident as she served as the drum majorette for her high school band, setting the stage for her many future roles directing choirs.

As she journeyed through life, Ailene Elizabeth enacted the hardworking values instilled in her by her parents. In addition to contributing to household chores, she began work at age 12, and over time held many jobs including work as a wallpaper trimmer, a waitress, and a candy maker dipping chocolates at the Russell Stover Chocolate Factory. She also worked at the Elgin Watch factory making watch parts, until their production was diverted to support the war and she later learned the metal parts they were pressing were for artillery. Later in life, she was gifted a sewing machine as an anniversary present. She checked out books from the library to learn how to sew from a pattern. True to form, she turned this gift into a thriving business and beautiful hobby. She was awarded more than 175 ribbons in sewing competitions and her family will be forever grateful for her contributions to the household income.

Over the course of her long life, Ailene Elizabeth married three times. She was the wife of Lloyd Garner (1950-1963), Harold Kearns (1963-2000), and Herbert Boyd (2002-2011).

She was the mother of three children, Dan Kearns, Dixie Garner Williams and Diana Dinella.

She was Mom-mom to nine grandchildren, Kathy, Michelle, David and Ruthanne, Lisa and Sheri, and Brian, Michael, and Laura.

She was Mom-mom and GG to many, many great grandchildren including Serenity and her namesake Hope Elizabeth; William and her namesake Elizabeth; Sophia; Christina, Jacob, Eli, James and Abygail; Phoebe, Ila and Ian, Kayla and Charlotte; and Rosco, Jesse, Michaela, Caspian and Joshua.

Ailene Elizabeth will be remembered for her sense of style and energetic nature, but probably most for her love of music and her beautiful voice. She was the director of the choir within the Long Beach Island Woman’s Club (of which she was a long-term dedicated member) and the Ocean Community Church Choir. She even sang at Carnegie Hall with the Garden State Philharmonic Chorus.

Her family loved it most, however, when she would sing them Happy Birthday and break out in songs by Patsy Cline or teach the children the song about the green alligators, long neck geese and unicorns.

Ailene Elizabeth passed on the importance of family taking care of one another, reliance on God to guide us even in our most challenging moments, the value of hard work, and the importance of giving back to our community (much like she did as a volunteer at the local hospital and to her Fawn Lakes neighborhood). So many people will take the gifts of love that she gave them and share them with the world.

A memorial service to celebrate the life of Ailene Elizabeth Boyd will be held on Sunday, February 4^th at Maxwell-Tobie Funeral Home with a gathering starting at 2pm and service beginning at 3pm. Friends and family are invited to attend and pay their respects. Ailene Elizabeth had a dedication to St. Jude Children’s Hospital and Forked River Presbyterian Church in New Jersey.

The service will be streamed on Facebook Live beginning at 2:45pm at https://www.facebook.com/maxwelltobiefuneralhome