Enola "Renee" Garten Kounse

     Enola ‘Renee’ Garten Kounse, 61, of Pence Springs, WV went home to be with the Lord on Friday, March 3, 2023 where she is having a reunion with her husband, Malcolm ‘Mike’ Kounse and her father, Alvin Garten.

     Renee was born September 30, 1961 in Clifton Forge, VA, and was a beloved resident of Summers County.  She was a 1979 graduate of Talcott High School.  Renee was a member of the Pence Springs Community Church where she was a pianist and vocalist, secretary of the Women’s Fellowship, and attended Sunday School.  As the leader of the youth group, “The Lighthouse Beams”, she became a mother figure to many of the youth in the community. 

     In addition to her husband and father, she was preceded in death by her paternal grandparents, Carl and Stella Garten; her maternal grandparents, Huber and Ethel Pauline Wallace; her in-laws, George and Janet Kounse; and a sister-in-law, Brenda Kounse Willey. 

     Those left to cherish her memory are her mother, Betty Wallace Garten of Pence Springs, WV; Kassi Hedrick Coleman, whom she loved like a daughter; Connie Buckland, regarded as a sister; Matt Montgomery, a close friend; David Willey, brother-in-law; and Bucky Kounse, cousin; as well as several more family members and friends.

     Funeral services will be 2:00 P.M. Thursday, March 9, 2023 at the Pence Springs Community Church with Pastor Ronnie Cobb officiating and assisted by Pastor Roger Persinger.  Burial and graveside services will follow at the church cemetery.  Friends may call from 1:00 P.M. until time of services. Pallbearers will be Dale Hedrick, Steve Hedrick, Nathan Hedrick, Stacy Jones, Bill Humphrey, and David Willey.  In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in memory of Renee to: The Gideons International P.O. Box 713 Beckley, WV  25802.