Kay F. Johnson

ORANGE- Kay F. Johnson, 85, of Sunset Drive, died January 12, 2025 at Baystate Franklin Medical Center in Greenfield.

She was born in Orange on May 31, 1939, the daughter of Waldo G. and Genevieve E. (Hough) Johnson. She graduated from Orange High School and attended a secretarial school in Boston. She graduated from Williams College School of Banking, Trust Division, in 1974.

Kay worked for ten years at the former Minute Tapioca plant in Orange, first as accounting clerk and later as secretary to the plant manager, until the plant closed in 1967. She subsequently worked as a secretary for the U.S. Department of State Foreign Service, being stationed in Buenos Aires, Argentina and in Boston. Coming back to Orange to live, she was employed by the then Franklin County Trust Company in Greenfield and became a trust officer responsible for estate administration, a position she greatly enjoyed. Following that employment, Kay worked as a legal assistant for law firms, retiring from Curtiss, Carey, Gates, Graves and Goodridge in December 2007.

Kay enjoyed playing bridge with her friends, reading, bird watching, word games of all kinds, singing with friends, working in her yard, and walking in the Quabbin. In her younger days, she enjoyed dancing, bicycling, and cross country skiing.

She was active in her church where she was a member for over 69 years. Kay also served on various town committees, including the Local Assessment Committee for the siting of a hazardous metals recycling plant, Zoning Board of Appeals, and Landfill Study Committee, and as a Trustee of Soldiers’ Memorials for 4 ½ years. She was a member of the Orange Athenaeum Club for 32 years, a director of the Area Civic Theatre, lifetime member and former treasurer of the Orange Historical Society, and a trustee and secretary of the Orange Scholarship Foundation.

Her brother, David Johnson, predeceased her in 1996, as well as a much loved aunt, Frieda Hough, in 1987, along with long time close friend Richard D. Stone.

Survivors include four nieces, Marilyn Hardy of Troy, Missouri, Helen Bales of Richland, Missouri, Evelyn Testerman of Perryville, Maryland, and Cynthia Robertson of Richmond, Texas; several cousins; and many good friends.

A graveside service will be held on May 31, 2025 in South Cemetery, Orange, at 11 a.m.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to your favorite humane society or environmental organization.

Witty’s Funeral Home, 158 South Main Street, Orange, is assisting the family.

Guest book online at WWW.WITTYFUNERALHOME.COM

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