Nicole Jo Kennedy Obituary
Nicole Jo Kennedy, 56, passed away Thursday, October 23, 2025, surrounded by her family after her hard-fought battle with cancer.
Nicole was born in Raleigh, NC on October 24, 1968 to Bob Allen and Lynne Hoagland Secrest. She grew up in Cary, NC and graduated from Apex High School in 1986. She then went on to work in her long standing career of payroll and billing. She later in life earned her associates in medical billing.
Nicole married Michael Scott Kennedy on July 15, 1989 in Wake Forest, North Carolina after meeting at a gas station Scott managed in Raleigh, NC across from where Nicole worked. They had a short courtship before their marriage, and decided to start a family not long after.
They lived in Youngsville, NC surrounded by their friends, family, and community before moving to Charlotte, NC where Scott started his own business. Nicole worked under Scott as their business thrived in the Charlotte area until 2008 when the family decided to move back to Youngsville, NC.
Nicole and Scott have three living daughters: Jessica (31), Rachel (28), and Danielle (25). The girls were the light of Nicole's life and her biggest accomplishment. Growing up, she valued quality time with them with game nights, arts and crafts, movie days, library afternoons, and, dancing around the house to incredibly loud music.
Later in life, Nicole enjoyed spending time with her three grandsons (Landon (6), Wyatt (3), and Colton (3)) as much as possible. Their favorite hobby was to pick pinecones up from the yard. Nicole enjoyed completing puzzles, gardening, sewing, cooking for her family, sitting around the fire pits with friends, decorating the house for every season, and shopping at craft fairs. She loved her life and the 9 acres her and her puppy dogs could take walks on every day after work.
Nicole valued family and quality time with her favorite people over everything else in life. She believed that as long as you had good people who surrounded you and loved you, that life was worth living. She also gave her life to Christ at her baptism in the early 2000s. We know that she is at home with Jesus free from the pain that her cancer caused her and is celebrating her freedom with her passed loved ones in heaven.
The people she leaves on Earth will miss her dearly. She leaves behind her husband, Scott and their two dogs Hank and Cooper. Her daughter Jessica Miller, son-in-law Jared, and grandsons Landon and Wyatt. She leaves behind her daughter Rachel Sifple, son-in-law Gant, and grandson Colton. She leaves behind her daughter Danielle Goodman, and son-in-law DJ.
She precedes in death her father, Bob Allen, her stepmother Kathleen Allen, brothers Robert Secrest (Kathryne), Damon Allen (Holly), and Josh; sisters Jennifer Pedneau (Ben) and Dara Allen; nieces Alex Secrest (Shae); Ashley Benevides; Haley Graham (Hunter); Robyn Secrest; and Savannah Stone; nephew Robert Allen; and mother-in-law Carol Kennedy.
She is preceded in death by her mother Lynne Hoagland Secrest and father-in-law Brian Thomas Kennedy.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Transitions LifeCare Center at https://www.transitionslifecare.org.
A celebration of life services will be held by the family at their home. Time and date to be announced at a later time.
