Katherine L. "Kay" Chamberlain

Kay Chamberlain, 85, of Mt. Pleasant passed away Monday, March 2, 2009. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 2 p.m. Friday, March 6, at Sacred Heart Catholic Church with Fr. Bob Byrne presiding and Fr. Loren Kalinowski concelebrating. The family will receive friends at the Charles R. Lux Family Funeral Home, 2300 S. Lincoln Rd., on Wed. from 6-8 p.m. and Thursday from 4-8 p.m. The Vigil will begin at 7 p.m. Thursday. Visitation continues at the church on Friday one hour prior to the Mass. Kay was born May 23, 1923, in Clare, the daughter of Earl and Dora (Allen) Dwyer. She graduated from Clare High School in 1941 and went on to receive her Bachelors in Nursing from the University of Michigan in 1945. While in college, she met her future husband, Dr. Ray Chamberlain, and the two were married on June 9, 1945, in Carlisle, PA. She worked as a charge nurse in the Neurosurgery department at U of M and in the late 1940s moved to her husbands hometown of Mt. Pleasant. Kay was very active at Sacred Heart Parish and in her community. She belonged to a number of organizations, including Zonta and the Ninety-Nines. She was the first woman appointed to the Michigan Aeronautics Commission. She was a safety counselor for the FAA and served on the Jury Board and Ferris State University Nursing Advisory Board. Some of her favorite pastimes were flying, reading, studying theology, smocking, and heirloom sewing. Kay is survived by nine children, Fred (Peggy) Chamberlain of Crystal Lake, IL, Jan vonReichbauer of Saginaw, Loretta (Doug) Palmer of St. Augustine, FL, Paul (Sue) Chamberlain of Blanchard, Ray (Janet Barnes) Chamberlain of Minneapolis, MN, Nancy Laming of Jacksonville, FL, Vicki (Garry) LaBelle of Mt. Pleasant, Dennis Chamberlain of Grand Rapids, and Linda (Steve) Henderson of Prairie Grove, IL; daughter-in-law, Virginia Chamberlain of Mt. Pleasant; 28 grandchildren; three great-grandchildren; two brothers, Mike (Leah) Dwyer of St. Louis and Jim (Jean) Dwyer of Mt. Pleasant; sister-in-law, Mary Jean Dwyer of Traverse City; and numerous nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her husband in 1997; son, Lynn and son-in-law Bob vonReichbauer in 2005; three brothers, Ray, Thomas, and John Dwyer; and three sisters, Marjorie Thayer, Rosemary Schofield, and Ann Dwyer. In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Central Michigan Community Hospital, Cystic Fibrosis Foundation, or the National Multiple Sclerosis Society. Envelopes are available at the funeral home.