Anne Ihnat Kress
Anne Ihnat Kress, 92, formerly of Avella, passed away Monday, July 13, 2020, in Washington, where she had lived since 2003.
She was born Annie Margaret Ihnat in Dowell, Ill., January 7, 1928, a daughter of Pavel “Paul” and Elizabeth Durkota Ihnat. The family moved to Avella in 1930, where she grew up.
Anne graduated from Avella High School in 1945, the Pittsburgh Institute of Aeronautics in 1948 and completed three years of a five year course towards a BS in Nursing Education at the Washington Hospital Center in Washington, D.C.
She worked for the U.S. Government in Washington, D.C., for more than 20 years. Her first position with the U.S. Navy’s Bureau of Medicine and Surgery gave her an opportunity, through competitive exam, to become a Navy special projects person, which brought forth a succession of administrative positions in Washington. She was a secretary on several presidential committees, including the Draper committee that studied military and economic assistance. She traveled overseas in 1960 as an administrative member of the Disarmament Delegation in Geneva, Switzerland, a 10-nation committee designed to address nuclear disarmament during the Cold War. Anne spent the next 10 years at the Pentagon, first in the General Counsels office and then as secretary to Joseph A. Califano Jr., the special assistant to the secretary of the Army. She also worked at the White House during the early days of the Nixon Administration.
Anne completed her government career at Fort Huachuca, Ariz., and returned to Western Pennsylvania, where she worked for the Avella Area District School as secretary to the principal and later as an office supervisor at Equitable Gas in Ginger Hill. She retired in 1994 and later worked part time at Avella Library, located in the old high school building, until 2010.
Anne married John Kress Jr., of Cleveland, Ohio, an architectural graduate of Cornell University. The early years of the marriage were spent in Cleveland, where two sons were born and then near Harvard University in Cambridge, Mass., where her husband was employed as an architect. Several years were spent in Gaithersburg, Md., where he worked for the National Institute of Standard and Technology. Her husband died in 2003.
Anne grew up in a very close and loving family.
Her survivors include her children, John “Jack” Kress and his wife, Brenda Kae Ward of Washington and their sons, Ty, Dax and Kody; Paul Matthew Kress and his wife, Amy McCartney, also of Washington, and their daughter Britni Lee Anne and husband Dayne Warren. Anne’s siblings include her brother, John Ihnat of Annandale, Va., and his wife, Patricia Vengrin and their daughter, Anne Beth Prentice of Springfield, Va., and Jane Natalie Cessna of Sterling Va.; her sisters, Helen Westwood and husband Rollin of Mashpee, Mass., and their daughter, Elizabeth of London, England; Patricia Lewis of HoHoKus, N.J., and her late husband, Paul and children Katherine Broadbent of Ramsey, N.J., and Todd Lewis of Manhattan Beach, Calif., and Terry Jean Ihnat and her husband Nick Harrison of Albuquerque, N.M., and their son, Paul of Washington, D.C.; nieces and nephews Sydney, Brock, Lauren, Zachery, Kyla and Luke.
Anne loved her family, her books, all kinds of music and dance, and the people of Avella. She especially loved her grandchildren. She was fond of paranormal stories, history, Ruthenian food and was a die-hard Pirates and Steelers fan.
All funeral services are private.
Burial will be in St. John Cemetery, Avella.
In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions can be made to the Avella Public Library, 11 School Court A, Avella, PA 15312, or Concordia Hospice Donnell House, 10 Leet Street, Washington, PA 15301.
Condolences may be expressed at www.stefkovichfuneralhome.com.