Obituaries

Jo Ann (Dent) Allen, beloved wife of Fred, father to Chris (Claire), Cliffe and Paul (Karen), was born January 30, 1932 in Ashland, Kentucky.

After college at Western Kentucky University, she took her first job teaching in Bardstown – where she stayed for the next 65 years.

She passed peacefully on April 6, 2026 at 94 years of age after multiple battles with breast and liver cancer.

She attended Ashland High School where she excelled in classwork and music, especially piano and clarinet. She was first chair clarinetist in the Tomcat Band that marched in the inaugural parade of President Harry S. Truman. After graduation, she majored in piano and public school music including band instruction at WKU. She was active in college, playing in the college band while also teaching piano. She scored 198/200 as a “marksman” in her physical education rifle class. In her senior year she was chosen to edit the college yearbook, the Talisman. She is proud to have been at Western when her friends The Hilltoppers, a vocal quartet, rose to the top of the pop music chart and appeared on The Ed Sullivan Show.

Her first job out of college was as the music teacher in the Bardstown City Schools. This was where she eventually met Fred, who grew up in Botland and returned to Bardstown to teach after college. Over her 37 years at Bardstown City Schools, Jo Ann’s choral groups regularly received superior ratings at state competitions. She added French to her teaching repertoire later in her long career. She was active in Bardstown’s music activities, being a member of the Stephen Foster Music Club. She collaborated with her husband Fred in the music program at First Christian Church, accompanying on piano and organ for church services as well as being in the handbell program. During the summers, Fred and Jo Ann ran the box office for many years at The Stephen Foster Story outdoor musical.

After retirement as a teacher, she trained to become an interior decorator with Decorating Den, earning many sales awards. She was intimately involved in the design and decoration as the First Christian Church moved from downtown to their current location. Jo Ann also volunteered with the Bardstown At Home program providing free services to local senior citizens. In 2004 she received an Outstanding Volunteer Award for this work. For all these and many other accomplishments, she was awarded the title of Kentucky Colonel.

She met Fred Allen, a new teacher at Bardstown, in 1957. They were married in 1960. They raised three sons: Chris (Claire), Cliffe, and Paul (Karen). Jo Ann intensely loved being “Granny” to her six grandchildren: Meaghan, Morgan (Stephen), Evan (Laura), Tyler, Brady, and Barret. She especially doted on the first 2, her “M&M girls,” which is understandable after raising 3 sons of her own. She particularly loved when her “grands” came to see her during the summer for their “Bardstown vacations.” She was preceded in death by her husband Fred, her parents Claude Dent, Jr. and Iva Jo (Loar) Dent, and her sisters Janet (Frederick) and Claudette (Johnson).

A celebration of life for both Jo Ann and Fred is scheduled for Saturday, May 9, 2026 at the First Christian Church in Bardstown (175 E. John Rowan Blvd, Bardstown, KY 40004) with visitation and a service at 11:00 A.M.

If you have memories you would like to share in advance of the celebration of life, please contact Chris, Cliffe or Paul to get a link to record a quick video, share any special pictures you may have of them or just share a memory. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to The Bardstown Foundation for Excellence in Public Education https://www.bardstownfoundation.org/ (308 N. Fifth Street, Bardstown, KY 40004).