Obituary

Kay Francis Smith Prinkey, 71, of Darlington Twp., formerly of New Brighton, passed away on Sunday, June 7, 2020 in UPMC-Shadyside.  Kay Francis is survived by her loving husband of nine years, Ross Prinkey.  Kay Francis is joining her first husband of 41 years, Fred Smith, in eternal peace.

Born October 27, 1948 in New Brighton, she was the daughter of the late Leslie and Margaret (Parsons) Reynolds.  Kay Francis dedicated her life to being a guardian angel for all of God’s children.  She blessed many children through her work at Beaver County Children & Youth Services for over 25 years until her retirement in 2009.  Kay Francis’s passion was volunteering her time with area youth organizations.  She helped lead New Brighton Youth Baseball.  She was active in the New Brighton Area PTA.  Kay Francis is most well-known for the many years she led the Beaver County Festival of Trees which supported the Beaver County Children’s & Youth Services.  In her retirement Kay Francis invested her love in the children of her family through cooking, crafts, making gifts, entertaining, and encouraging dreams.  

Kay Francis is also survived by her children, Rodney (Diana) Smith, Timothy (Rhonda) Smith, Jennifer (Benjamin) Smith and Michael (Rachel) Prinkey; nine grandchildren, Brittney (Joe) Brodzenski, Mitchell (Dee) Smith, Ricky Halahan,  Dylan (Danielle) Smith, Hunter Marchand, Katie Kay Smith, Chloe Smith, Grace Prinkey and Brayden Smith; five great-grandchildren, Landyn, Veronica, Brennan, Eli and Jonah Smith; her sister, Mable Henn; numerous nieces and nephews; and her cherished dog, Josie.

In addition to her parents and first husband, she was preceded in death by her brother, Leslie “Butch” Reynolds; and two sisters, baby Kay and Leslie “Sissie” Hodgkinson.

Friends will be received on Friday from 11am-3pm and 5pm-8pm and on Saturday from 11am-3pm in the Gabauer Funeral Home,1133 Penn Avenue, New Brighton-www.gabauerfamilyfuneralhomes.

A celebration of Kay Francis’s life and inturnment at the National Cemetery of the Alleghenies will take place at a later date.

Kay Francis had a kind spirit and a giving heart.  If you had a chance to meet her you would see the joy in her eyes, and hear in her voice, the way she loved everyone.  In honor of Kay Francis, the family is requesting that in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions be made in her name to Relay for Life to her favorite team or to your favorite Relay for Life team.

Link for relay: http://www.relayforlife.org/bradysrunpa

Link for team: https://secure.acsevents.org/site/STR/RelayForLife/RFLCY20NER?team_id=2478096&pg=team&fr_id=96146