City of Oaks Funeral Home & Cremation
Obituary
Kenny L Brandon
Raleigh, North Carolina
Age 52.
Died 02/15/2026.
June 18, 1973 - February 15, 2026
Beloved father/papa, grandpa, devoted
life-partner, brother and friend. May his spirit be at peace,
and his beautiful memories last forever.
Kenny Brandon, 52, of Raleigh, North Carolina, passed away unexpectedly in his home on February 15, 2026, and will be missed by so many.
Kenny was born in Chicago, Illinois, within the large and close-knit of the Brandon family, raised by his mother along with brother and sister, with many aunts, uncles and cousins. Following his graduation from Kelvyn Park High School, Kenny served as a Communications Operator in the US Marine Corps, making life-along friends (brothers) who kept up with him to present day. During life, he resided in Chicago, Hawaii, Wisconsin and North Carolina. He traveled many times throughout his life, both domestic and abroad.
Kenny loved deeply, had a huge heart, and was an amazing human being - never ceased to amaze Wendy, his life-partner of 24 years. He was strong, resilient and a critical-thinker. Kenny was a student and practitioner of natural health and alternative (ancient/traditional) therapies. He loved to make meaningful connections with his children, grandchildren, other family and his good friends, as well as people he would just meet going out to the farmer’s market, events or out dancing. Kenny loved to Dance - at home, in the car and out with a crowd! He was part of a street dancing team in Chicago as a boy. He loved a Harley, a good car, and feeling “Free.”
Kenny was not a man for a lot of small talk, but if his wit, humor &/or charm could make someone smile or laugh or feel good, he would do it. He carried a huge presence wherever he went - His spirit is Big.
Kenny’s recent years of focus, besides his own health/fitness and wellbeing, was primarily on that of fostering the relationships with all four of his children, his grandchildren, and watching and championing the developments of nephew Noah and niece Priya’s regular pursuits. Family meant the world to Kenny. He always worked to keep the relationships that meant something to him.
He loved his kids unconditionally, always. Darian, Kenda and Salim, born to him; and Sawyer, raised her from just turned 4 and often expressed cherishing the honor. He loved his boys; he loved his girls. Kenny embraced them each for their own uniqueness, and without a doubt, they each carry the different traits of their Dad/Papa. Although physically distant, it was very important to him that all his grandchildren got to know him - he was a part of all their lives to varying degrees.
All around good person, Kenny was always willing to lend a hand to family, friends and strangers alike. The world is not the same without him.
Kenny was preceded in death by his parents Hazel Jean Brandon and Benny Starks, his sister Twanda Brandon, and one of his closest cousins Charles Marsh. He is survived by his partner of 24 years Wendy Gillespie, his brother Anthony Brandon, and his children Darian Brandon Hardwick (wife Jordon) and boys Cole, Maleko, Makaio; Kenda Mincy and girls Leilani and Kaleia; Sawyer Gillespie (partner Nolan); Salim Brandon Shaheed (wife Dashia) and boys Salim Jr and Jayair; in addition, Uncle Lester Brandon (wife Jean), Great Aunt Mary (husband Edgar), many loving cousins, nieces, nephews, and his special friends: his life-long friends and regular contacts Zardale Warfield and Demetrius Cole, cousin Michael Brandon, 35 year friends and fellow Marines Darian Blaine and Jeffrey Bratcher, and long-time close friends of 25 years Ralph McClinton & nephew Michael Wilkins (wife Khushboo), and the list goes on.
Kenny’s Military Honors will be performed at the Veterans Memorial Park (205 N Main St, Oconomowoc, WI 53066) on June 18, 2026 at 1:00pm - attendees will gather at 12:30pm.
His Celebration of Life gathering will follow and be held in Ixonia, just 20 minutes from the park. All those who would like to celebrate Kenny’s time with us, share your memories and stories with us, and be in the gratitude of having shared life with this man in any small or big way, are welcome to join the party celebrating the essence of the best of Kenny Brandon.
For additional information or for service details, please reach out to the family directly.
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City of Oaks Cremation and Funeral Home is a full-service funeral home in Raleigh, serving all of North Carolina and beyond. We provide an alternative to costly funeral homes and every day we help families in Raleigh, Durham, Chapel Hill and all over North Carolina make simple, affordable funeral arrangements.
Simply having to reach out to a funeral home can feel overwhelming. Our goal is to simplify the entire funeral home experience and make the process as easy as possible. We hope to eliminate any unnecessary surprises by publishing our total cost and the services we provide directly on our website. All of our obituaries are provided free of charge as a way to help families celebrate and commemorate the lives of their loved ones.
Our Promise
Apples to Apples
Just like all other licensed funeral homes in North Carolina, City of Oaks Cremation, LLC is regulated by the NC Board of Funeral Service.
The same laws that apply to the big corporate funeral homes also apply to the modest independently owned firms like ours. All crematories in North Carolina, regardless of who owns them, are inspected annually by the state and must adhere to the same rules and laws.
Genuine Care
We're committed to providing families within our community unsurpassed service before, during and after the time of loss.
Our staff will provide clear communication to your family through each step as we move forward from the original phone call notifying us of a death to the time we deliver the urn back to your family. We will treat your family with the utmost respect, as we honor the wishes of your loved one.
We promise to make this process affordable and as endurable as possible.
State Wide
Our Funeral Home is located in Wake County NC; however, we provide our services to families throughout the entire State.
Unlike other funeral homes, we don't charge an additional mileage fee. Regardless of what county you live in, we can help your family with making simple, affordable funeral arrangements. From Asheville to Wilmington, we're proud to help families statewide.
Our Services
$1196.75
Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. We include everything you need for a simple or direct cremation. Simple, affordable and reliable. We have not changed the cost of our direct cremation service since we opened City of Oaks in 2012.
$2875.66
We offer the option of choosing how you receive your loved ones remains. Selecting our Direct Cremation with Solidified Remains option is a beautiful way to transform cremated remains into 40-60 “stones” that you can hold.
$1917.84
City of Oaks Funeral Home and Cremation provides an affordable cremation option with onsite visitation. Nobody likes surprise costs added in at the last minute. We guarantee you will not find any hidden charges here. Simple, affordable and reliable.
$1596.75
City of Oaks Funeral Home and Cremation provides an affordable cremation with a private family viewing. A private family viewing allows up to 10 immediate family members or friends to spend time with a loved one when a public visitation is not preferred.
$2497.50
An immediate burial has the same end result as a traditional burial; however, we have eliminated the extra (sometimes unnecessary) services prior to getting to the cemetery. Not everyone wants an open casket for viewing or a limousine for the family. Despite the term immediate, we can move as fast as you need or as slow as you like. This option simply allows you to save money by eliminating some of the fancy extras at the funeral home.
$6081.48
We offer the same traditional funeral services as the big corporately owned funeral homes in the area; however, we cost about half the amount. You might consider a traditional funeral service if your family is looking for an open casket visitation, a traditional church service or a funeral service in the funeral home's chapel. A traditional funeral service can be altered to fit the needs of your family.
$3033.75
This establishment is one of a select number of funeral homes who meet the criteria for providing green funeral service by the Green Burial Council; a tax-exempt, nonprofit organization working to encourage environmentally sustainability in the field of funeral service. Our Green options allow for a funeral to take place without the use of toxic and non-biodegradable materials/chemicals.
$2640.59
As an alternative to traditional cremation, City of Oaks Funeral Home offers Alkaline Hydrolysis. The Alkaline Hydrolysis process uses a solution of water and potassium hydroxide to facilitate natural decomposition.