Kathleen B. Amos

Kathleen Amos Obituary

Kay was born in Oxford, England, as Kathleen Beryl Veale. She became a medical secretary and soon met Henry James Packer (Jimmy) who was a bacteriologist at Churchill Hospital. Following their marriage, in 1947, they moved to the small village of Beckley nearby. It was in the early post-war period, when times were hard for many. They raised two sons and had many happy days, living in a quiet English village. They had a very large garden, which absorbed much of their leisure time, and meant that the family were self-sufficient in vegetables. Kay never drove a car in England, but during this period she rode a BSA motorbike, often carrying one of the boys on the back.

Sadly, Jimmy died in 1980, and after more than 30 years Kay left the village she loved. It was then, in 1984, that the second big adventure of her life occurred. A lifelong friend, also widowed, proposed that they marry. So Kay married Bernard Amos, a professor at Duke University, and came to live in Durham, North Carolina. She readily adapted to a completely different way of life. At the age of 60 she learned to drive a car (on the opposite side of the road to England) and continued to do so until age 89. During this time she traveled the world with Bernard, accompanying him on his lecture tours, and hosted his colleagues, she made many new friends, and enjoyed her new stepfamily.

Kay loved the life in the US. She enjoyed the shopping malls and was a passionate and knowledgeable follower of tennis and Duke University sports. Her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren were a source of joy, and she never forgot a birthday or an important event in their lives. To the end, her memory was exceptional and detailed.

Kay was a special English lady, an American citizen, who loved North Carolina, and she will be greatly missed.