Obituary of Muriel Dorothy Kent

Muriel Dorothy Kent, 93, a former resident of Phoenixville, passed away peacefully on Wednesday morning, June 18, 2025 at Barclay Friends in West Chester, Pennsylvania. She was born Muriel Dorothy Dolan on April 25, 1932, in Rahway, New Jersey.  On February 25, 1954 she married the love of her life, Carl P. Kent.  Together the couple raised three children. 


Muriel was known by all as a fun loving, kind and fiercely independent woman. She will be remembered as a devoted wife, mother, grandmother and friend.  

As a young girl she was called ‘Irish’ by those who loved her — alluding to her locks of radiant red hair.  Always a bundle of energy, she distinguished herself on basketball courts as a captain and high scoring forward in the Rahway Church Basketball League. As a high school student, Muriel was not one to sit still: she was active in theatre arts, yearbook and several service clubs that helped her develop skills for a career in business administration.



After she graduated from Rahway High School in 1949, she completed studies at the Berkeley School of Secretarial Training in East Orange, New Jersey. Muriel held secretarial positions in the manufacturing, advertising and entertainment industries and was recognized by her colleagues as an expert stenographer and typist.  She took a break from her career to raise a family, but returned to administrative work later in life and retired from Unisys in 1996.


Muriel’s commitment to loved ones leaves family and friends with fond memories of holiday meals, New Jersey beach vacations and boisterous backyard gatherings.  She took real delight in embellishing her home for Halloween, Christmas and Easter, caring for family pets, and tending patio bird feeders and gardens.  She prepared simple meals, with love. Her grandchildren devoured her oatmeal cookies, looked forward to Thanksgiving green bean casserole and gladly pulled up to her dining room table for “fish stick Friday” dinners.



She is preceded in death by her husband of 50 years and her parents, Dorothy (Newman) and William H. Dolan.  Muriel is survived by her loving children: Cherise Kent and her husband Henry Hudes, of Sharpsburg, MD, Barby Bonett, of Phoenixville, PA, and Carl P. Kent, Jr. and his wife Heather Polzin, of Charlotte, NC; by her cherished grandchildren: Bruno Bonett, Spencer Kent, Ellis Kent, Nolan Kent and Tessa Kent; and by her brother, William L. Dolan, of Hazlet, NJ.

Services will be private.  All arrangements are being handled by the R. Strunk Funeral Home.  Online condolences can be made at www.rstrunkfuneralhome.com