James Kevin Bishop

Kevin was born on July 1, 1947 in New Orleans, LA to Jacqueline O’Connelly, a young, unwed woman, who chose to give her son up for adoption. James Benton and Vashti Gill Bishop adopted and raised Kevin, as well as his younger sister Kathleen who survives him. Kevin graduated from Baton Rouge High School and attended some college at LSU.

Kevin was married for a few short years to Cheryl Rhodes, with whom he had his only daughter, Lara. Kevin is survived by his daughter and sister, as well as three grandchildren, Julian Benton Arceneaux, Garrett David Richardson, and Alexondra Vashti Richardson, and three great-grandchildren, Julian’s children Jake, Ryan, and Natalie.

Kevin was a Vietnam veteran, and was very troubled throughout his life by his time in the war in Vietnam. Just a few years ago, he revisited Vietnam with his grandson Julian, hoping for some personal resolution and closure. As fate would have it, his grandson befriended their cab driver, who invited him to his home for a meal, where he met his future wife, Duong.

After the war, Kevin moved around a great deal, finally settling in Los Angeles where he worked most of his life in the cable and communications industry. It was there that he would finally re-establish a relationship with his daughter.

Kevin considered himself a socialist, and greatly despised, as many do, the political machinations of today’s American government. He was a Harley Davidson enthusiast and owned at least one for most of his life. He battled addiction for most of his life as well, and this led to his unstable relationship with family and friends. About fifteen years ago, he was finally diagnosed and treated for PTSD as a result of his time in the war. His sobriety finally seemed to stick, and he reconnected with his sister and daughter, even moving to Florida to be closer to them.

He was diagnosed with a slow progressing form of cancer several years ago, and recently suffered from a sharp decline in his health. He made it very clear that he was ready to go, and hopefully, he has found the peace he lacked in life.

The family will have a private service, however, if friends wish to honor him in some way, they can make a contribution to their local animal shelter. Kevin was a great lover of animals, particularly cats, and spent the last years of his life advocating for the care and management of feral cat populations.