Marilyn E. Kay Obituary
Marilyn was diagnosed with cancer in December of 2018. She chose to go through treatments even in her mid-80's and was declared cancer free in March of 2020. She was re-diagnosed with cancer in 2025 and passed away due to complications from it at her daughter's home on September 26, 2026, with loved ones at her side. She will be buried at Mt. Ever Rest Cemetery on South Westnedge Ave. in Kalamazoo, Michigan. A memorial service will be held in her honor on Tuesday, October 13th, 2026, at 11am at Resurgence Church, 315 Watson Rd., Otsego, MI 49078. Memorial may be made to the American Cancer Society, c/o the funeral home.
Marilyn Elaine (DePew) Kay was born on Christmas Eve, December 24, 1934, on a farm in Kendallville, Indiana to her parents Alfred Hanson and Glenneice (Coe) DePew. She was the fourth of six children. She was preceded in death by her siblings Irene, Kathleen, Richard, and Lance. She is survived by her younger sister Brenda. Marilyn worked in the high school office and in the school newspaper as a senior. She graduated from Richland High School in 1954 and later took college courses at KVCC.
By 19 she began working for AAA of Kalamazoo, and was soon asked to manage the ladies in the office. She worked there for 11 years. Marilyn married Walter Daniel "Danny" Kay on October 27, 1962. Together the couple had two children, Heidi (Dan) Heystek and Daniel P. Kay. Marilyn became a devoted stay at home mother for the next 8 years; doing interior design work on the side for her husband's growing building company. Sadly, the two divorced in the fall of 1975, leaving Marilyn a single parent from that point on. She then returned to the workforce.
Marilyn worked in real estate for a short time before becoming a secretary in the development office at Kalamazoo College. She worked for the presidents and their fundraising department for 27 years until her retirement in 2004. She was nicknamed the "bread lady" as she sold her delicious bake goods to her co-workers for extra income to support her family. Two of her recipes made it into women's magazines, and two others placed first and second place at the local fair. Her daughter eventually collected all of her recipe jottings and created a cookbook for the family in 2018.
Marilyn was also an avid reader who could finish a novel sometimes in one night. She loved long walks with her dogs and was a lifelong fan of the Detroit Tigers baseball team. She always wore a smile on her face, sang happy show tunes, and never met a stranger. She loved encouraging others and giving hugs to all who would receive them, saying "A hug is love".
In her later years she was devoted to her 8 grandchildren; Benjamin, Nickolas, Christofer, Nina, Samantha, Madison, Zackary and Kate; and was blessed to live long enough to know her 19 great grandchildren. She lived a very full and wonderful life to say the very least.
