Marlborough – Katherine “Kay”A. (Lane) Brooks, 86, of Marlborough, died peacefully Wednesday, Jan. 30, 2013, surrounded by members of her loving family, after a period of failing health.
Born in Taunton, she was daughter of the late Edward J. and Catherine (Cabana) Lane. Kay graduated in 1944 from Taunton High School, where she was a member of the Honor Society and Spanish Club. She attended Pembroke College at Brown University, Providence, RI, from 1944 to 1947.
Following business school for typing and shorthand at Bristol County Business College in Taunton, Kay was employed with a number of companies over the years, including the John Hay Library at Brown University, the Rhode Island School of Design in Providence, the American Automobile Insurance Company and Ellsworth Travel Service in Providence.
Her husband, Paul J. Brooks, whom she met on a windjammer cruise off the coast of Maine, predeceased Kay in 2002. Kay and Paul were married Dec. 28, 1957 in Taunton. Following her marriage, she worked at Roux Travel Company in Fitchburg.
During the 1960s and early 1970s while raising a family of four children, Kay attended night school and received her Bachelor's Degree from Framingham State College (FSC) in 1972. After receiving a Certification in Special Needs from FSC, she started teaching at JFK Middle School in Hudson as a Learning Disabilities Tutor, first part-time then full-time. She later completed her Master's Degree in teaching from FSC.
Kay retired from her teaching position in June 1991 and subsequently enjoyed volunteer work at the Massachusetts Audubon Society, as well as a substitute special needs teacher in Hudson. She loved singing and was a member of the Wayside Chapter Sweet Adelines Chorus for 18 years.
Her hobbies included extensive educational travel with her husband through Elderhostel Programs and cruises throughout the world. Kay also greatly enjoyed music, reading, swimming, painting and weekly games of Scrabble with friends. She was a former member of the Immaculate Conception Parish in Marlborough.
She is survived by her brother, Joseph Patrick Lane of Chappaqua, NY; her children, Anne (Robert) Tattersall of Bolton, Jonathan Brooks of Amesbury, Susan (Craig Lant) Brooks of Berkeley, CA, and Stephen(Nancy) Brooks of West Chesterfield, NH; and five grandchildren. She was also the sister of the late Edward (Ted) Lane.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated Tuesday, Feb. 5, at 9:00 a.m., at the Immaculate Conception Parish, 11 Prospect St., Marlborough. Burial in Wildwood Cemetery will be private. Visiting hours will be held Monday, Feb. 4, from 4 to 7 p.m., at the Slattery Funeral Home, 40 Pleasant St., Marlborough.
In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to Our Danny Cancer Fund (Payable to UMMF), UMass Medicine Development Office, 333 South St., Shrewsbury, MA 01545, or through their website at www.umassmed.edu/development/ourdanny.aspx.
