She was born Catherine Christine Maier on June 24, 1934, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Frank and Mary Agnes (Heisse) Maier. Kay was raised in Philadelphia, attending and graduating from John W. Hallahan Catholic Girls’ High School in 1952. She met Robert “Bob” Woods after he was honorably discharged from the Navy in 1954. After a whirlwind courtship of 30 days, they were married in Elkton, Maryland, on August 31, 1954. They moved to the family farm south of Mount Vernon, where they would spend their 40 year marriage in partnership, farming and raising their 4 children: Kevin, Carol, Michael and James. Kay worked at the Mount Vernon Community Schools in the Superintendent’s office, and also served as the “Lunch Lady,” and took tickets at all sports events, which she enjoyed greatly. She lost her husband to cancer in 1994, and spent the next 19 years living on the farm, active in the lives of her children, grandchildren, and eventually great-grandchildren. Kay was a lifelong Catholic, active in attending and participating at St. John’s Catholic Church in Mount Vernon.
Over the years, several Philadelphia relatives ventured to the unsettled farmland of Iowa, where, at first, they were concerned about Mom having electricity. Rita and Swede Toften and Mary Anne and Kenneth Rocks were the most frequent visitors. Recent visitors, Marianne Maier and Chrissy Sermarini-Kelly, arrived this summer with Kay’s brother “Sonny”—a thrilling surprise.

Kay was preceded in death by her parents; husband, Bob; sisters, Mary (Andrew) Crawford, Rita (James) Walsh and Carolyn (William) Stalnecker; brothers and sisters-in-law, Ray Overman, Eddie and Sis Pitlik, Joyce and Leon Gardeman, and Chuck Woods.

We all think our moms are special and, indeed, they are. Kay had her faults, and all who loved her knew them. But there was never a child, neighbor, nor errant son who was not given shelter from the storm when needed, or a grandchild who wasn’t spoiled with toys or cookies, because to Gammi Kay, they were special, and they knew it—a great gift in itself. Diets, housecleaning, checkbooks, and finances were an eternal mystery to her, but loving and caring for family, children, and people in general were not. If compassion is the coin of heaven, she died a rich woman indeed.
Although not originally written by her, in her own perfect Catholic school cursive penmanship (the nuns would be proud), Mom left these words to be included in her obituary:

“There will be a tomorrow that exists without me. When that day arrives, I want this world to have seen greater beauty because I existed. I want my life to have meant something. I want this world to be brighter. I want this world to be happier. I want people to have smiled more, laughed more because I spent time here. I want others to have seen and felt the uniqueness of my spirit and if I accomplished that when my soul does move on and my gift stays here and makes just one ripple, I will look down and I will smile, I will smile wide.”