Kathryn Ann Wagner Noonan, a former kindergarten teacher in Branford, Conn., who was known for her warmth and kindness and her devotion to her family, died on November 26, 2020 in Mystic, Conn. She was 88.
Throughout her life, Kay loved the beach, kayaking, quilting, golf, tennis and being with her grandchildren. She also enjoyed classical music, theater, museums and traveling. She and her husband of 45 years, Robert Emmett Noonan, who died in 1999, moved to their vacation residence in Quonochontaug, R.I. in retirement, and this home, within walking distance of the beach, became a virtual summer camp for their children and grandchildren.
Kay was born on Jan. 2, 1932, in Chicago to Matthew and Anita Wagner. When she was 10, the family, including her older brother Jim, who died on Sept. 22, 2020, moved from Illinois to Connecticut.
She attended the University of Connecticut, where she met her future husband and earned a degree in English. She later received a master’s degree in early childhood education from Southern Connecticut State College.
After graduation, she taught first and second grade for two years before starting a family. She resumed her career in education in 1968 when the youngest of her five children was 4, teaching kindergarten for more than two decades.
After moving from Branford to Quonochontaug, Kay volunteered at the Jonnycake Center of Westerly and was an active church member, most recently attending the Dunns Corners Community Church Presbyterian in Westerly and the Mystic Congregational Church. She was also a member of the Westerly College Club, which awarded scholarships to deserving local students.
Kay moved to Masonicare in Mystic in December of 2016.
She is survived by her five children, Nancy Noonan, Robert (Jennifer), Jane Dudzik (Greg),
Thomas (Alicia), and Christopher; eight grandchildren, Hunter Dudzik, Caroline Noonan, Robert Noonan, Isabel Campos-Noonan, Charles Dudzik, Thomas Dudzik, Jack Dudzik, and Vanessa Zayas; and four great-grandchildren.
Services will be private, and a celebration of life will be announced at a later date. Our family would like to extend a special thank you to Masonicare Hospice and caregivers Amie and Thobi. Donations in Kay’s name may be made to The Jonnycake Center of Westerly, the Westerly College Club, or Connecticut Hospice.