Kay was inspired and in turn inspired others.  She lived with flair, style and grace. It was during her career in Advertising and media in the 1960s she had her offices at Fisherman's Wharf with a panoramic view of the San Francisco Bay and Golden Gate Bridge that she created a 'nom de plume'  - 'Kay by the Bay' .  It became her 'nom de vie' for the rest of her life. Even her name had panache.

Kay experienced and embraced  life to her core seeing it as a Grand Adventure. She had a strong feeling for the dramatic and her imagination fueled  and deepened her experience and appreciation of life and the world.    She loved the theater attending regularly and making theater trips to London. Gifted at shaping the world,..... in stories, images, atmospheres,........she had the magic.

Kay was an exceptional family person , mother, and wife, bringing energy, stability, support and encouragement creating a beautiful romantic home. She loved her parents, uncles and aunts, cousins, nieces and nephews and stayed close throughout her life..

She identified strongly with and felt close to her Roots - Her great grandmother emigrating from Cork, Ireland during the  Great Famine in Ireland around 1850 and homesteaded in Minnesota with her three children,  Her mother's family were French and Irish,  a great great grandmother being born in Paris. She loved her all her family, living and deceased.

Kay was forever young. She was optimistic , energetic and progressive ,  She loved young people, new ideas, new fashions. new and different ways of doing something.......forever riding a creative wave and applauding others doing the same. She stayed active and on the town until two years ago.  Strolling the Streets, lingering in cafes and wine bars,  attending parties, exercising, pumping iron at the gym, regular massages and even pilates training kept her moving and grooving deep into her 90s. It wasn't unusual for her to be the oldest person in the room - by double !

Kay valued her friendships highly  and was a good, dedicated  and earnest friend.  Always a good listener, Kay was also happy to lend her perspective  and share her life wisdom. She was particularly fond of her many cousins and stayed in contact with each generation.

A Leo , Kay was very comfortable in the limelight. People were drawn to Kay.  Complete strangers would approach her on the street or cafes in later years just to make contact. and know a bit of her. She was a writer,  a raconteur, a story teller and a sage.  The photo above is of her as the Home and Design Editor of the San Francisco News Call Bulletin newspaper - doing a story on the famous race horse ' Silky Sullivan' on Saint Patricks Day. Kay was a communicator and it was so fitting that she had a such a varied career in media :  Newspaper, Radio, TV, Magazines and Advertising. Kay was a member of the American Federation of Radio and Television Artists.