Obituary

Kathleen “Katy” McNair Collins, age 64, of Ferndale, WA, passed away on Friday, May 6, 2016. Kathleen was born in Stockton, CA, September 1, 1951, and met and married Charles “Chuck” Collins on November 24, 1979 in Oakland, CA.

She is survived by husband Charles Collins of Ferndale, WA; daughter Amy Collins of San Mateo CA; son Jeff Collins (Jill) of Sunnyvale, CA; grandson Braden Collins of Sunnyvale CA; aunt Rita Murphy of Granger, IN; and niece Gretchen Lichtenwalner and grand-niece Bretta Lichtenwalner of Windsor CO,

She loved sports, especially ice hockey, puzzles and games, and decorating and design. Her academic career, which included elementary school at Linden Elementary School in Linden, CA, Lincoln High School in Stockton, Mills College in Oakland, and Stanford University, as a third generation educator, prepared her for a lifetime of teaching and learning. She was a member of Phi Beta Kappa, and was a long-time Ferndale substitute teacher from 2004-2012.

Katy was a 4th generation Californian and descended from Oliver Wolcott, a signer of the Declaration of Independence, and Henry Wolcott, a soldier serving during the Revolutionary War. After a long and courageous battle with cancer, Katy died at home on Friday May 6th surrounded by her family: husband, son, daughter, grandson and daughter-in-law.

In lieu of flowers, please make donations (financial or volunteer) in Katy’s name to the Whatcom County Hospice Foundation (whatcomhospice.org), or a local hospice in your community.

Katy is preceded in death by mother Jean Walcott McNair; father N.J. (Hub) McNair; grandmother Mildred Walcott and grandfather Glenn Walcott of Stockton CA; and brother Michael McNair of Watsonville, CA. A memorial service will be held on Thursday, May 12, 2016 at 5:30pm at downtown Ferndale Moles.