Kathryn Ruth was born on Saturday, August 2, 1952, in Owen Sound to proud parents, Carman George and Ruth Elizabeth (Lang) Hoath. In fact, she was born on the same day and hospital as her future brother-in-law, Murray Tedford. The family joke was that Murray leaned into Kathy in the nursery and told her that he had an older brother at home she should meet someday…

The Hoath family resided in Owen Sound, where Kathy joined older brothers Ron (1943) and Wayne (1945). She attended Hillcrest Elementary School, with the exception of one year. Hillcrest reached capacity while Kathy was in Grade 6, and she was part of a group of kids chosen to go down the 9th Street West Hill to Dufferin Elementary for the year. It should be no surprise that she did not particularly excel that year as she was away from all her friends and was forced to walk up and down the large hill daily. Miraculously, she somehow got herself back into Hillcrest for Grades 7 and 8, before going on to attend West Hill (West is best!) for her high school years.

In April of 1970, and upon graduation, Kathy found work as a receptionist at New Life Feeds in Hanover. Here she met Kate & Jack Moffat and established a friendship that lasted a lifetime. By this time, Kathy had purchased a most desirable vehicle, a blue, standard Volkswagen bug which she used to get around. Kathy later moved on to Buckeye Peerless in Hanover before heading to the city, moving in with her brother Wayne and his family. It only took her a few days to find work with an insurance company. She eventually found her own place, an apartment, in a home owned by the Rivett family in Whitby. She went on to attend church with them and joined a youth group. Here Kathy was introduced to the McGraw family and enjoyed spending a great deal of time with them, along with Wayne & Dianne and their daughters Kim & Rhonda. Kathy was the world’s best babysitter. She often travelled back and forth on weekends to visit with her friends and family. On one such weekend in the summer of 1974, Kathy attended a dance in Sauble Beach, where she met a strapping young man by the name of Howard Emerson Tedford. During their courtship, Kathy moved back to Owen Sound, moving back in with her parents, and found work with Manpower, whereby she could walk to work. Howard proposed in the parking lot of the Owen Sound bowling alley in the Fall of 1974 and the young couple were wed the following spring, on Saturday, April 5, 1975, at First Baptist Church, Owen Sound. A freak spring snowstorm meant their wedding almost didn’t happen; ultimately the festivities eventually did proceed even without several family and friends in attendance.

The newlyweds immediately called the Tedford homestead on the 2nd of Arran home. Here they welcomed their daughter, Mary-Jo in 1975, before their family was made complete with the arrivals of Laura (1977) and Bryan (1978). Kathy remained very busy in those early years providing for her young family, all the while helping Howard on the farm where she could. Together, the Tedford’s were known for their large garden, which usually included a little bit of everything. In fact, for several years, the family was able to grow and supply the majority of their food for the entire year. It was during this time that Kathy learned from her mother-in-law, Marjorie Tedford. She shared her knowledge and talents, and Kathy built on her cooking and sewing skills. Throughout the kid’s childhood, Kathy was credited with making much of their clothing, as well as mending anything and everything. As the kids grew, they became involved with 4-H, whereby Kathy took on the additional role as a leader of various clubs. It was during these early years on the farm that Kathy was first introduced to horses, and her passion only grew as she and Howard later became involved with 4-H and the Tara Horse Club. The family spent at least 35 years, along with the Moulton family, organizing and working the Arran-Tara Fall Fair horse show and gymkhana. Sadly, due to her illness, Kathy was unable to attend the fair for the first time this past September. However, as her dedication and commitment were so strong, she was still able to assist Howard and Laura from home with her incredible organization and computer skills. From those early days on, the Tedford family had a multitude of horses. Kathy enjoyed carriage horses, and could often be found driving them, from the comforts of her cart or buggy. In fact, I am told Laura could ride a horse before she could walk… seriously! Although there were many favourite animals through the years, Sexy Rexy, a retired and rescued Mennonite horse, and neighbourhood miniatures were some of her favourites. She shared her love of horses with many and this love formed deep friendships with Rita Dykeman, Louise Wiley, and Susan Walker. When not tending to or working with her horses, Kathy could often be found working in their greenhouse. Rosemount Farms Greenhouse was established on the foundation of Howard and Kathy’s hard work. For years, they provided family, friends, and their community with a variety of plants, flowers, primulas and succulents, to name a few. She loved sharing her talents and creations with others and would spend hours and hours puttering in the greenhouse. It really was her happy place!

In 1994, the year Mary-Jo headed off to college, Kathy returned to the workforce and found work as a contractor for Canada Post. She took on the role of a rural delivery driver and then proceeded to spend the next 20 years delivering mail to the Tara R.R. #2 and R.R. #3 routes. Here she met Ginny Glover, and they worked together for many years and formed a special friendship.  In 2014, after 20 years of service, Kathy retired, as the winter driving was beginning to wear on her.

As you can see, life was often busy for Kathy, however, she did enjoy a bit of free time. In these moments she dedicated herself to being a member of the Christ Church Anglican choir, sharing her gift of music. She was also a proud member of the Arran Tara Fall Fair board and holds the honour of being the first female president(2006). This was the same year Howard brought the now infamous lawnmower races to the fair. Kathy spent time volunteering as a member of the Tara Craft Fair committee. She also had a fondness for photography and shared her talents with others through her photo collages and photo books. Although not a big traveller, highlights for Kathy included their honeymoon Caribbean cruise, a Disney cruise with her family, a train adventure to the East Coast, and who could forget her week-long wagon train trail ride with Laura and her parents, in Jackson Hole, Wyoming.

Retirement afforded Kathy extra time to pursue her love of genealogy, as she worked the lineage of the Tedford and Hoath families. Being a lifelong learner also led Kathy to explore advancing her knowledge of technology, in recent years. In addition to learning everything about cell phones, computers, and the internet, Kathy also automated much of their home. When relaxing at home Kathy could often be found watching a cooking or gardening show, either on the television or YouTube. Although there were many family favourites when it came to her cooking, lasagna, blueberry or cherry cheesecake, and her roast beef dinner with all the fix-ins were among her favourites. She herself loved pasta, homegrown strawberries with ice cream, and coffee – who can forget coffee!

Kathy loved spending time with her children, and in more recent years her grandchildren. They all enjoyed their time on the farm with grandma and papa! When not entertaining the grandchildren, Kathy could often be found enjoying visits from her grand puppies: Sandy, Harley, and Chewie. Kathy was a loving, caring woman who loved to talk. She could make conversation with literally anyone and was genuinely interested in the lives of those she knew and loved. Sadly, in recent months, Kathy was diagnosed with an advanced form of cancer. Roles quickly reversed, and Kathy was surrounded with the love and support of her family and friends. As a family, they made the best of each and every day, as Kathy’s health continued to decline further in recent weeks. She passed away surrounded by her loving family, at Brightshores Health System, Owen Sound on Thursday, November 7, 2024, in her 73rd year.

The family would like to take this time to sincerely thank the dedicated staff at Brightshores, Owen Sound for the incredible care and compassion shown to Kathy during her time in hospital. They would also like to send a heartfelt appreciation to the many friends and family who visited; including Connie, Susan and Ginny. Your friendship means more than you will ever know.  Kathy was also fortunate to receive love, support and spiritual guidance from both Canon Carrie and Reverend Annie.

Beloved wife of Howard. Loving mother of Mary-Jo Tedford (Wade), Laura (Cliff) McClain, and Bryan (Alycia) Tedford. Cherished grandmother of Elizabeth, Tyson, Max, Veronica, and Penelope and great-grandmother of Payton. Kathy will be dearly missed by her brother Ron Hoath, sister-in-law Dianne Hoath, brothers-in-law Vernon Tedford, Barry (Carolyn) Tedford, and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her brother Wayne Hoath, niece Cindy Weber, brother-in-law Murray Tedford, her In-laws Emerson and Marjorie Tedford, and her parents Carman and Ruth (Lang) Hoath.

Visitation will be held at Christ Church Anglican, Tara (56 Union St.) on Friday, November 15, 2024, from 6 – 9 p.m. where a memorial service honouring Kathy’s life will be held on Saturday, November 16, 2024, at 10 a.m. Inurnment in Hillcrest Cemetery Columbarium, Tara.

Kathy’s faith was strong, and she was a committed member of Christ Church Tara. In the last few years, she was unable to attend weekly services in person, but this did not limit her participation. Thanks to modern technology and YouTube, Kathy was able to view Sunday Services from the comfort of her own home. She was a regular, faithful viewer. As such, Kathy requested her service be available for anyone who can not attend her funeral service.  A videotaped version will be posted on the website on Monday, November 18, 2024.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations to the Canadian Cancer Society or Christ Church Anglican would be appreciated as expressions of sympathy.