Mary Kathleen “Kay” Alexander
1926-2019
Mary Kathleen “Kay” Alexander (neé
Smith), wife of the late Harry Alexander, passed away Friday, March
1st at the Saint John Regional Hospital with her family at her side.
She was born on September 20th, 1926 in Saint John to the late James
and Ella (Shannon) Smith, the youngest of three children, and their
only daughter.
Kay first met Harry in Fredericton and they married in Saint
John in 1955. They moved to the Saguenay region of Quebec
and they had four children over the next five years. As a
forester, Harry was often away on forest operations through the week,
leaving Mom to keep home and hearth going. The kids often
joked about being the first kids on the block to be called in to go to
bed on those fine summer nights. We often suspected Mom put
the hour hand forward so she could get her well-earned rest – but she
always had time for us. They left the Saguenay in1965 and over the
next fourteen years the family lived in Bathurst, N.B., Renfrew, O.N.,
Chandler, P.Q., Nackawic, NB and finally when Harry joined the New
Brunswick government in 1979, they moved to Newcastle (Miramichi),
N.B.,where they stayed for thirty years. Everywhere the
family lived Kay was involved in the community – fundraising for a
community pool, leading a Brownie group, canvassing for the CNIB, and
volunteering at food banks and Meals on Wheels.
Mom always believed in an active and healthy lifestyle,
including yoga, whole wheat bread and the fresh air of the outdoors.
She kept up with the latest nutritional information and practised the
current guidelines on healthy eating. Chips, pop and candy
were infrequent in our house, and a cause for celebration when we had
them. She learned to ride a bike at forty years old while
her sixty-seven year old father cautioned her to drive carefully as he
stood watching from the front door. In her fifties and
sixties, she learned to cross-country ski and swim. In her
seventies she line-danced with the Purple Violets Senior Dance group,
and did so until age eighty-three when she moved back to Saint
John.
Kay was predeceased by her parents, her husband of fifty-five
years Harry, her brother Ralph, his wife Noreen, and her brother
Harold.
She is survived by her sister-in-law Sylvia Smith, her
daughters Jane Flanagan (George), Kathy Alexander (Peter Alteen), sons
Neil Alexander (Amy), Peter Alexander (Sharon) and beloved
grandchildren Laura (Matt Gariepy), Rob (Angela), and Stephen
Flanagan, Susan and Clare Alteen, David Alexander, Kelsey and Ryan
Alexander, and great-grandchildren Ben Flanagan and Liam
Gariepy.
Kay is resting at Brenan’s Funeral Home, 111 Paradise Row, Saint John
((506) 634-7424), with visitation 2-4 pm Tuesday, March
5th. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated Monday,
April 29th at 1:00pm at the Cathedral of the Immaculate
Conception. Reception to follow.
In lieu of flowers, a donation to the Cathedral Restoration
Fund would be much appreciated, or a charity of your
choice.
www.brenansfh.com
Our most sincere sympathies to the family and friends of Mary Kathleen Kay Alexander 19262019..
Death notice for the town of: Saint John, Province: Nouveau-Brunswick