Kathleen "Kay" Erickson, 88, Fargo and formerly of Minot, Mohall and Columbus, died Monday, February 12, 2007, in Elim Care Center, Fargo.

Kay was born on March 8, 1918, on the family farm near Donnybrook, ND, the daughter of Lloyd and Marie (Olson) Spencer. She was raised and educated in the Columbus area, where she graduated from Columbus High School in 1933. She worked for a short time in a Fargo drug store and was united in marriage to Mamford Erickson on April 9, 1939 at Columbus.

They made their home near Columbus, while her husband owned and operated a general store near the Truax-Traer Coal Mine. They moved to Mohall in 1950, where they operated the Mohall Café for over twenty-two years. Mamford died in 1963.

Kay moved to Minot in 1972, where she was employed at the Oppen Home as a housemother until retiring in 1992. Kay had moved to Fargo in 2004 to be nearer her family.

Kay was a member of Zion Lutheran Church at Mohall for many years and had attended First Lutheran Church in Minot. Kay held a life-long passion for the arts and took every opportunity to walk in the rain or snow and enjoy the beauty of the natural world. She believed strongly in the value of education and following retirement joined the Golden Oaks group in Minot, in their effort to help local students. Kay made life-long friends wherever she lived, drawing young and old alike. She will be remembered especially for her ability to instill a sense of worth and future in the hearts of so many.

Her loving family includes: daughters: Lynne Triplett-Benson, Fargo and Shelley Erickson and her husband, Dale Spartz, Phoenix, AZ; son: Terry Erickson, Stewart, FL; grandchildren: Cal Erickson, Carrie Steir, Carmelle Erickson, James Duncan, & Mitchell Triplett; great-grandchildren: Colton, Chyann, Caden, Michael, Katie Marie, Reiley, Krystal Shayne, Derek and Josh.

Kay was preceded in death by her parents, husband, daughter, Shayne, brother, Page Spencer and great-grandson, Zachary Triplett.

Funeral service : Saturday, February 17, 2007 at 11:00 a.m. in Thomas Family Funeral Home, Minot.
Interment : Mohall Community Cemetery, later in the spring of 2007.
Visitation: Friday from 2:00 - 7:00 p.m. in the Thomas Family Funeral Home, Minot. There will be no reviewal prior to the funeral service.
Memorials are preferred to the Kay Erickson Memorial Scholarship at Minot State University.