Ouachita County Louisiana Archives Obituaries.....CAUSEY, HELEN KATHLEEN CRANDALL (KAY) February 11, 2014 ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/la/lafiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Gina Brown rootsgirl36@gmail.com February 26, 2014, 5:22 am News Star World - February 16, 2014 HELEN KATHLEEN CRANDALL (KAY) CAUSEY Helen Kathleen (Kay) Crandall Causey died Tuesday night, February 11, 2014. She was born October 19, 1918 to the union of Persons Jay Crandall and Olga Margaret Crandall, nee Bergan in Sioux City, Iowa. Although they lived in Elk Point, South Dakota, Sioux City was the closest place with a hospital. Her father moved the family from Elk Point, South Dakota, Huron to South Dakota to Evanston, Illinois, before moving to Jackson, Michigan where she graduated from high school in 1936. In that same year her father lost his job and the whole family picked up and moved to Dallas, Texas in the middle of a record breaking heat wave. After finding a job and lying out of college for a year, she was able to save enough money along with some scholarship money and enrolled at SMU. After two years there, she managed to get a scholarship to Barnard College, the woman's college associated with Columbia University in New York City. She graduated from Barnard in June 1941 with a B.A. in English Literature. During World War II she was working in New York City, when she decided to join the Red Cross. Her assignment took her to Kunming, China in 1944, where she stayed until the end of the war entertaining the troops at bases in China. Among the many highpoints in China, she met General Chennault and produced the first off Broadway productions of Oklahoma at different bases around China where she produced the musical and danced the part of Laurie. She was able to do this because she was able to get a pirated script from a friend in New York. After the war she returned to New York and worked several jobs while studying dance. After a back injury, she found an opportunity to move back closer to her family in Dallas by taking a job as the Director of the Little Theater in Monroe. To supplement her income she taught speech at Neville for one year in 1946-47. She met future husband Alfred L. (Bid) Causey in one of the plays in 1946 and after what was a whirl wind romance they were married in 1947. They had three boys, George Stewart Causey, David Brian Causey and James Gregory Causey. In 1956 she was asked to start up a day care at the First Methodist Church in downtown Monroe. After a year the church board decided that since they weren't making any money at this endeavor and they would close it down. So she asked them if she could rent the space in the education building at the church and they agreed. Hence the start of what became The Little Red School House. Over the next thirty one years, until she and her husband retired in 1988, it grew and grew until there were five locations in Monroe and West Monroe going through the sixth grade along with a summer camp out in the Cadeville area of West Ouachita. In retirement they traveled the world until her husband died February 26, 1992. She was also worked as a volunteer with Our House, the Girl Scouts and the regional recruiter for Barnard College. She was a voracious reader all her life, always searching for more knowledge. She was a member of Nota Bene and De Nova book clubs. Also, a member of Monroe Garden club, English Speaking Union and ADK retired teacher's sorority. She had been a faithful member of the First United Methodist Church of Monroe for 65 years and a member of the Collins Sunday school class. Kay is preceded in death by her husband of over 44 years, Alfred L. (Bid) Causey, her parents, Persons Jay Crandall and Olga Margaret Bergan Crandall and two sisters, Margaret Kate Crandall Barton and Dorothy Deane Crandall Johnson. Special thanks to the staffs at St. Francis Hospital, St. Joseph's Skilled Nursing, United Home Health, Senior Care Services, and Hospice Compassus for the great attention, compassion and care shown during mother's last year. She is survived by her three sons, George Stewart Causey, David Brian Causey and James Gregory Causey, niece Karen Morris, grandnieces Michelle Ceferatti, Kimberly Morris and Kendalynn Morris, niece Shelia Causey Massey and nephew Claude Adams Causey along her very special "French Daughter" Dominique Gendrin. She donated her body to medical research and a Memorial Service will be held at First United Methodist Church in Monroe, LA at a future date. In lieu of flowers please make memorials to any of the following; the Red Cross, Our House, the Girl Scouts, St. Jude Children's Research Hospital , ULM Department of Performing Arts or the Strauss Playhouse, Delta Ballet, the Monroe Symphony League or the charity of choice . File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/la/ouachita/obits/c/causey2392nob.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.net/lafiles/ File size: 5.2 Kb