John Keith Dudley passed away on October 6, 2016 in San Antonio after a full life that spanned over 93 years. Uncle John, as he was referred to by his family and his neighbors, was born to Beulah “Dude” and Zedkiah Dudley on May 1, 1923.  He was raised in Kenedy, Texas and moved to San Antonio after High School graduation.  He was proud of his service in the U.S. Army and his years as a civil servant at Kelly A.F.B. where he worked until his retirement.  His post-retirement life was very fulfilling since he was a true “Renaissance Man” who had many varied interests and talents.  He enjoyed watching movies and television with his two viewing favorites being anything on PBS and the game show Jeopardy.   His family knew, even his furry baby Buster, not to disturb him when it was time for Jeopardy.  Anyone who met Uncle John soon discovered he was an authentic bibliophile in that he truly loved to read and admired and collected books covering many areas of interest, ranging from historical dramas to mysteries, biographies to paperback novels. He was very proud of his “Rutledge” family heritage and took every opportunity possible to research his family history.  He loved to talk politics and was a genuine “New Deal” Democrat, who expressed as recently as last week, how proud he was that he had voted a straight democratic ticket every time he voted.  He loved to cook, and was famous for his “Mama Dude Chili” and his Spaghetti and Meatballs.   We always looked forward to seeing what mystery dish he was going to bring for Thanksgiving Dinner since he loved to experiment with new recipes he would come across. Uncle John loved music, especially jazz, and was not only a great self-taught artist, but also took pride in the years he was instructor of the Mixed Media Studies Class through the Academy of Learning in Retirement (ALIR).

More than anything Uncle John was a wonderful, kind, caring human being who loved his family and in turn was loved and cherished by them.  He is survived by his nephew Richard (Rick) N. Clark (Rheda) and his three great-nieces and one great nephew, Margaret Ann Kinman and husband Sam, Carol Marie (Mimi) Sauceda and husband Rudy, Julie Elise Mery and husband George, and Richard (Rick) E. Clark.  In addition, he is survived by nine great great nieces and nephews (Kyle, Lisa, Chad, Nichole, Nicholas, Teryn, Keith, Jeff and Clifton) and seven great great great nieces and nephews [Peyton, Sage, Graydeon, Christopher, Isabella, William (Liam) and Logan].  Uncle John used to laugh about how many greats had to be used when he was introduced to someone, but he was so proud of each and every one of them and shared his art with them over the years and in turn treasured and displayed the art projects he received from them.

A graveside service will be held at the Kenedy Cemetery in Kenedy Texas at 11:00AM Tuesday, October 11, 2016.