Kay Wolcott of Big Flats passed away on February 8, 2023 at age 90. Daughter of W. Chandler and Sophia (Dracz) Rowley, she was born in Corning, NY. She was a graduate of the Northside High School in Corning and of the State University of New York at Geneseo with a degree in library science and elementary education. In 1953, she married the love of her life, Ezra R. Wolcott, Jr. of Big Flats, NY.
After her husband completed his military service with the US Army in Germany, the young couple returned to Big Flats where Kay raised their three children, Gregory (Nancy), Alec (Chris) and Kathryn. She worked in the Horseheads school system as a librarian and as a substitute teacher. In her later years, she worked in the gift shop of the Corning Museum of Glass.
In addition to being an avid deer hunter—getting a buck on opening day three years in a row—Kay learned to fly single-engine airplanes earning her private pilot’s license and volunteering with the Powder Puff Derby when that women’s transcontinental airplane race included a stop at the Elmira-Corning airport. Other volunteer work included the Horseheads School Board, the Big Flats Women’s Club (president), and the Corning Sister Cities Association’s Lviv, Ukraine committee, as well as serving as an elder of the Big Flats Presbyterian Church and helping to establish the Big Flats Library. She enjoyed playing piano and bridge, gardening and salt-water fishing.
In addition to her husband and three children, Kay is survived by four grandchildren and five great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at the Big Flats Presbyterian Church, 95 Main St, Big Flats, NY 14814 on Saturday, February 18, 2023 beginning with calling hours at 11:00 am followed by a memorial service at 12:00pm.
In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Big Flats Presbyterian Church, PO Box 454, Big Flats, NY 14814 or to the Big Flats Historical Society, PO Box 232, Big Flats, NY 14814.