Mrs. Kay Frances Chamberlin Tinsley, age 76, a native of Waynesboro, Pennsylvania and a resident of Daphne, Alabama, passed away on Wednesday, Nov. 28, 2018 at her residence.
Kay grew up as an "army brat" spending much of her childhood in Germany, with short stints in Kansas, Soso, Mississippi and Birmingham, Alabama.
She was a 1960 graduate of Ensley High School in Birmingham. After graduating, she went to work as an administrative assistant at the Birmingham Police Department, where she met the love of her life and husband of 57 years, John E. Tinsley.
Through her adult years, she lived in Alabama, Louisiana, Georgia, Virginia, North Carolina and Tennessee. After retirement, she fulfilled a longtime dream of living in a log cabin in the Smoky Mountains.
In 2012, she relocated to Fairhope, Alabama, where she was an active member of the Newcomers of the Eastern Shore, the Fairhope Garden Club, the Down and Dirty Garden Club, Chapters Book Club and the Stone Creek Book Club. Kay was an avid reader and crafter and loved spending time in the Smoky Mountains.
She always had a smile on her face and a unique talent for making people feel warmly welcomed and cared for.
She was preceded in death by a son, John Scott Tinsley.
Survivors include her husband, John E. Tinsley; two daughters, Lisa (Tom) O'Hara and Donna (Will) Hornsby, all of Daphne, Alabama; one son, Chris ( Kristin) Tinsley of Tullahoma, Tennessee; one sister, Sarah (Jim) Seay of Orlando, Florida; one brother, Wilbur J. (Tammy) Chamberlin Jr of Ovett, Mississippi; seven grandchildren, Tommy O'Hara, John Brian O'Hara, McKenna Hornsby, Drew Tinsley, Everett Tinsley, Finnigan Tinsley and Kendall Tinsley; other relatives and friends.
Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, Dec. 1, 2018 at 10:30 a.m. at Christ the King Catholic Church.
The family will receive friends from 9:30 a.m. until time of the mass.
Interment services will be private.
In lieu of flowers, her family request memorial donations be made to the Alzheimer's Association, alz.org, or the Fairhope Public Library, 501 Fairhope Ave., Fairhope, AL 36532.
Arrangements by Wolfe-Bayview Funeral Homes & Crematory Inc., 27409 U.S. Hwy. 98, Daphne, Alabama 36526, 251-625-2900, www.wolfefuneralhomes.com.
