Kay Joanne Hadley

Kay Joanne Hadley, 86, of Dowagiac passed away peacefully at home on Tuesday, August 28, with her daughters at her side. Kay was born March 14, 1932 in Dowagiac, the middle child of Darrell and Grace (Cauffman) Belton. She was a lifelong Dowagiac resident and grew up surrounded by her loving family, including grandparents, aunts, uncles, and cousins. They often visited extended family such as the Shaffers in Berrien Center and the Beltons and Merrills in Grand Junction, MI. She had fond memories of summers spent with her grandparents and great-grandparents at Silver Lake in Grand Junction, along with her older brother Tom, younger sister Joby, and their cousin Marceille. Kay was a Camp Fire Girl and attended Camp Tannadoonah on Birch Lake in Vandalia. Since this was during wartime rationing, each girl had to bring a little bag of sugar to contribute for the week. She graduated from Dowagiac High School in 1950. In the early 1950’s, Dowagiac had three movie theatres downtown and Kay worked as the “popcorn girl” at the Chief, hanging out after her shift at Bakeman’s with childhood pals Mary Alice, Louise, Nancy, and Bobbi. It was during this time that she began dating a handsome man recently returned from service overseas, Richard “Red” Hadley. Kay and Red were married on April 22, 1955 in South Bend, IN. They made their home in Dowagiac and within a few years welcomed two daughters, Suellen and Janis. Kay and Red always enjoyed travelling “up north” in Michigan, vacationing at Ford Lake near Scottville when the girls were young. Later on the two of them often travelled the length of Lake Michigan, crossing the bridge and spending time at Welker’s Lodge in Grand Marais on Lake Superior. They loved visiting the lighthouses along the Lakes. In 1968 Kay began working at the Dowagiac Public Library, a job she thoroughly enjoyed. She was an avid reader. She made many friends there, and with her keen interest in genealogy and local and Michigan history, became the local history research librarian, retiring from the Library in 2003. She belonged to the Dowagiac Historical Society, served as treasurer for several years for the Cass County Historical Society, and was a current member of the Dowagiac Area History Museum. Kay was a fun person, always laughing and talking, beloved by her many friends, cousins, nieces, and nephews. She enjoyed 1940’s big band music and playing the piano. A true night owl, she could often be found in the late evening sitting crossways in her recliner like a teenager and talking on the phone to her sister Joby until all hours of the night. She loved coffee, chocolate, ice cream, was a talented seamstress and hated cooking. She kept in touch with her old high school friends and enjoyed attending her class reunions. The joy of her life was her family, especially her beloved granddaughters Jessica and Courtney. She was so proud of their accomplishments and kept their college diplomas displayed on her bedroom wall. In recent years she was overjoyed to welcome great-grandchildren Vivienne, Emilia, and Crosby. Any time there was a party she was the life of it and was always the last person to leave. She loved sharing family stories of old times and looking at old family photos. She was a lifelong member of the First United Methodist Church of Dowagiac and belonged to the Esther-Martha-Etha women’s circle. Kay was preceded in death by her parents; her husband of 56 years, Richard; her “second parents” Mabel “Mae Sooie” and Maurice “Tommie” Thomas; and her brother Thomas Belton. She is survived by her daughters Suellen (Curtis) Gause and Janis (Gary Fernham) Hadley, both of Dowagiac; granddaughters Jessica (Mike) Rubino of Traverse City, MI and Courtney (Adam) Hemenway of Dowagiac; sister Joby Jimearson of Sidney, OH; sister-in-law Linda (Tim) Brunt of South Bend, IN; brother-in-law Gary Cross of Edwardsburg, MI; sister-in-law Janet Belton of Brookfield, WI; great-grandchildren Vivienne and Emilia Rubino of Traverse City and Crosby Hemenway of Dowagiac; numerous cousins, nieces, and nephews; special caregiver Cecilia Gasca; and her cat Sammie. She will be deeply and truly missed. Kay’s family wishes to extend a special thank you to Dr. Bilal Ansari and nurse practitioner Frances Stapleton of Michiana Hematology Oncology for their kindness, expertise, and compassion. Visitation will take place at Starks Clark Chapel in Dowagiac on Friday, August 31, 2018 from 11 a.m. to 2 p.m. and again on Saturday, September 1, 2018 from noon until 2 p.m. Funeral service will follow at 2 p.m. Saturday with Pastor Stacey Wilder officiating. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the First United Methodist Church of Dowagiac or the Dowagiac District Library. Those wishing to leave an online condolence may do so at www.clarkch.com.