Catherine Nightingale

CATHERINE NIGHTINGALE

Prairieburg

Catherine B. "Kate" Nightingale, 92, of Beloit, Wis., died Friday, Jan. 24, 2014, at Sun Valley

Terrace.

She was born April 26 1921, in Prairieburg, Iowa, the daughter of William and Jennie (Conklin)

Crosby, and attended

Central City, Iowa, High School. Kate married

Richard W. "Dick" Night-ingale on Aug. 31, 1938, in Prairieburg and they shared 59 years of marriage. He predeceased her March 11, 1998.

Kate was employed by Central City Produce Co. and in Beloit, Trade Home Shoe Store, Fannie May Candies and retired from Michael Brill Jewelers in 1981.

She was a past Noble Grand of Goodwill for the Rebekah Assembly 100F. Kate was a Cub Scout Den Mother, treasurer of the Roosevelt Junior High School PTA, a member and treasurer of the Beloit Memorial High School Booster Club and a member of Retired Senior Volunteers (RSVP).

She was formerly a member of Grace United Methodist Church, where she sang in the choir, and was a current member of Sun Valley Presbyterian Church. She also was a member of the Rockford Chapter of the Model T Ford Club, where she and Dick loved to gather with other members to drive their 1936 Chevy.

Family was the centerpiece of Kate's life and she left behind a tapestry of love, care, class and support that is a model for everyone of us that she touched. She was forever a caretaker who would drop what she was doing in an instant to provide others with assistance when needed the most. This came in many forms, but those who knew her best remember unrivaled home-cooked meals, rhubarb, pecan and strawberry pie, rip-roaring games of Five Hundred and Dominos, tirelessly cleaning and preparing her home as a gathering place to be together, pride in everything that she possessed, being a second mother to many and most importantly, a giver of comfort, laughter and compassion. Her ability to do all of these things in such an unassuming way will always be an inspiration.

Kate's life was highlighted by travel, which was always by automobile. The annual family vacation to Balsam Lake, Wis., in June has and continues to provide a lifetime of memories. We can still hear her laughter from across the lake in their fishing boat and see her bouquet of peonies in the front window of the cabin. Kate cherished their trips around the United States with family that included treks to the Rocky Mountains when Tom was a child, trips to Florida, the Missouri Ozarks and two epic vacations with Tom, Kay and her grand-children to Disneyworld and Wash-ington, D.C.

In later years, she

and Dick were able to spend 10 winters in

Arizona amongst family and friends for a well-deserved escape from Wisconsin snow and cold.

Whether she was known as Kate, Catherine, Mom, Gram or Grandma Tiny, she will be forever missed, remembered and now flies with the angels.

Survivors include her son, Tom (Kay) Nightingale of Beloit, Wis.; grandchildren, Tim (Missy) Nightingale of Jordan, Minn., and Kim (Brent) Schneider of Beloit; great-grandchildren, Molly and Brett Nightingale and Macy and Micah Schneider; sister-in-law, Mae Crosby of Hiawatha and her nieces and nephews whom she loved and cherished.

She is also survived by her daughter-in-law's family, Jean (the late John W.) Pierson of Beloit; their children, Nancy (Cory) Ternberg of Eau Claire, Wis., and Becky (John) Wong of Beloit; and their children, Zea, Amaya and Taylen Ternberg and Kana and Kai Wong, all with whom she shared a unique family bond.

She was predeceased by her parents, and sisters and brothers, Lura Waters, Roy Crosby, Margaret Crosby, Robert Crosby, Edward Crosby and Mary Jean Siebels.

Funeral services will be 11 a.m. Wednesday, Jan. 29, at Sun Valley Presbyterian Church, 1650 Sun Valley Dr., Beloit, with the Rev. Dave Ewing and the Rev. Ian Stirrat officiating. Burial will be in East Lawn Cemetery. Visitation will be from 4 to 6 p.m. Tuesday at Daley Murphy Wisch Funeral Home and Crematorium, 2355 Cranston Rd., Beloit. Visitation will also be from 10 a.m. until the start of the service Wednesday at the church.

Memorial funds may be directed to either Sun Valley Presbyterian Church, Beloit Regional Hospice or The Stateline Community Foundation/Nightingale-Pierson Endowment Fund.

Online condolences may be sent to the family at

www.daleymurphy

wisch.com.

The family would like to thank the staff at Sun Valley Terrace for their care and concern, Beloit Regional Hospice in her final days and many relatives and friends who provided comfort, laughter, music and especially love during the past several years.