by Jeanie McKee
Aude McKee was born
and raised in Midland, Indiana, the youngest son of
William and Ollie McKee. He left home after high school
to work in Anderson, Indiana. It was there that he met
Verna Nunley, and they married in 1941. He served in
World War II as a medical corpsman with the Navy in
Trinidad. His career as a gospel preacher did not begin
for several years. In 1948 he moved his wife and young
son to Nashville so he could attend David Lipscomb
College and while there began preaching on a regular
basis. After his graduation, he began his first full time
work in Burns, Tenn. In 195 l, his family, now with two
sons, moved to Augusta, GA, where two more sons were born.
Aude moved from there to Crawfordsville, Indiana,
followed by a move to Plainfield, IN. In 1961, the family
went to Lagos, Nigeria, where Aude preached nightly on
the street and both he & Verna worked with the
Nigerian people. After two years they returned to
Plainfield. Their next move was to Murray, KY, followed
by Valley Station in Louisville, West Knoxville in
Knoxville, TN, Riverside Drive in Nashville, and Lakeview
in Hendersonville, TN, before Aude "retired" to
meeting work. Since then he preached in Franklin, KY on a
semi-regular basis, until Verna was hospitalized for a
lengthy period in the fall of 1998. Aude cared for her at
home until her death on June 12, 1999.Aude & Verna were true partners. They both had as their primary goal to spread the gospel of Christ and their commitment to that goal is evident in their writings and teaching materials as well as the testimony of the many people who express their love and respect for them. Verna supported Aude, not only through her encouragement and positive attitude, but by doing whatever was needed--whether it was drawing a chart, typing a lesson, or simply offering suggestions. Neither Aude nor Verna ever stopped studying. Their personal goal of greater knowledge and understanding of the Word of God continued even as they reached out to others.
Teaching came naturally to Verna. Born in
Kennett, Missouri, she was the oldest of four children,
so she began to use those teaching skills early. Her
family moved to Anderson, Indiana, fairly early in her
life and she graduated from high school there. She began
working in the clerical field before her marriage to Aude
and continued after he left for WWII. Besides much
experience in teaching Bible classes from an early age,
her most intense teaching experience was when she taught
her sons in their home during the two years they lived in
Nigeria. That consisted of two school years for three of
the sons and one year of high school for the oldest son--with
no duplication! There was much teaching to be done with
Nigerian women and children as well. She was always an
eager teacher of the Bible to anyone who would listen.