[Ferrybeach-news] In Memory of Pam Kay

[News about the Ferry Beach Conference Center in Saco, Maine]

Dear Friends,

 

It is with great sadness that we announce the passing of Pam Kay.  Pam died
on December 20, 2006.  A celebration of her life will be held at 2:30 PM on
Saturday, January 13th at the First Unitarian Universalist Society, 152
Pearl St. in Burlington, VT.  Inquiries may be made through Elmwood Meunier
funeral home.  There will be an informal gathering following the service.

 

Pam started coming to Ferry Beach in 1994 as a participant in the conference
"Hiking, Biking and Canoeing."  She quickly became a consistent participant
in "Clara Barton District Week," as well as "Work Week," "Music Week" and
"Homecoming."  She served on many committees, most recently the marketing
and fundraising committees.  She was also the moderator of this news list,
and we are forever indebted to her for helping to get our message out to all
of you.  Her last trip to Ferry Beach was during "Homecoming" this year, and
her smile and loving energy lit up every room she entered.  Despite her
weakened condition, she arrived with a new pop-up trailer ready for
adventure!  She even became a life member before leaving, a long term goal
she had set for herself.  She will be greatly missed.

 

There will be a memorial service for Pam this summer during "UU Fellowship
and Fun," formerly named "CBD."  We will send out more details once the
service has been arranged.    

 

Here is Pam's obituary:

 

COLCHESTER, VT - Pam Kay, an education researcher, political and social
activist, and single adoptive mother of two sons passed away December 20 at
Fletcher Allen Medical Center.  She was 64. 

 

Ms. Kay was born in Basking Ridge, NJ to Hester (Van Veersen) Kay and the
late Harold Kay.  After receiving a bachelor's degree in music education
from Susquehanna University, she taught students of diverse backgrounds in
Danbury 

and Greenwich, CT.  In the 1970s she moved to Manchester, VT to direct the
Girl Scout district's training and operations.  There she shared her
lifelong enthusiasm for camping, which she also enjoyed for decades at
Lowell Lake in Londonderry and recently at Ferry Beach in Maine.

 

Ms. Kay's love of children led her to bring others' sons to Lowell Lake, to
become a Big Sister, and to join Room for One More, where she gained friends
experienced in managing challenging adoptions.  In 1981 she successfully
fought a judiciary averse to single parent adoption so that she might adopt
a pair of brothers, aged 7 and 8, from a detrimental environment. 

 

Ms. Kay's concern for education led her in 1978 to obtain an M.Ed. degree
from UVM.  Her social concerns led her to take positions with the Vermont
Lung Association and state-level Democratic campaigns.  Subsequently
employed at the UVM School Research Office, she worked to enhance parent
collaboration with teachers and social service agencies.  Ms. Kay was a
coauthor of the books Achieving-Behaving-Caring: A Collaborative Model to
Promote Early School Success, and Preventing Problem Behaviors: A Handbook
of Successful Prevention Strategies.  Privately, she also helped women in
difficult circumstances obtain education and housing.

 

Ms. Kay's proudest achievement was her family. She is survived by her elder
son Benjamin Kay, his wife Amanda, and their son Benjamin Jr. Her younger
son Robert Kay is Board President of Green Mountain Self-Advocates and an
international participant in Special Olympics and Habitat for Humanity.  Ms.
Kay is also survived by her mother Hester, whose at-home care she worked
tirelessly to achieve, her brother David Kay and his wife Katy Weeks.
Another brother, Thomas Kay, predeceased Ms. Kay in 1980.

 

 

Craig Lentz, Executive Director

Ferry Beach Park Association

5 Morris Ave.  Saco, ME 04072

207.282.4489;  FAX: 207.283.4465

 <mailto:wfbcraig at maine.rr.com> fbcraig at maine.rr.com

 <http://www.ferrybeach.org/> www.ferrybeach.org