Kay Lord-Gasal- Aug 17, 2021

Kay Lord-Gasal of Andover, 70, passed away peacefully on August 17, 2021, in the home that she loved with her husband and loving cats at her side.

She was born on August 25, 1950, in Riverdale, North Dakota, to parents Kenneth (Bill) Lord and Hazel Lord (Bergstrom). Being born in North Dakota would not have been her first choice. Her father worked heavy construction which meant traveling from their home near Crosby, Minnesota, to where the work was, such as building the Garrison dam in North Dakota. Kay fondly remembered that as a baby just learning to crawl, she always headed east back towards Minnesota. As part of her father’s work travels, she had also lived in Red Wing, Murphy City, Two Harbors, Prior Lake, Stillwater, and Prescott, Wisconsin.

After graduating from the Stillwater High School, she attended the University of Minnesota and University of Wisconsin (Riverfalls). She spent her career as a legal secretary, working primarily in downtown Minneapolis. She credits her uncle, Judge Miles Lord, for helping her get her first job.

She was a member of the Anoka Toastmasters (a speaking club) for many years. She was admired in the club for her quick wit, keen sense of humor, and ability to tell entertaining stories with the best of them. For several years, she used her beautiful voice to do voice overs for videos her husband made for the Gasal family.

She met her husband in 1981 at a church seminar on how to survive and have fun while being single. They were married in 1985. She and her husband learned to work together to prepare gourmet meals, wallpaper rooms, decorate, and garden.

Kay loved the adventure of going to garage sales, flea markets, and thrift stores to find treasures to use in decorating the house. She transformed their basement into a northwoods cabin complete with hunting & fishing gear, toboggans, and pot bellied stoves. Her greatest decorating skill was the ability to convince her somewhat skeptical husband to go along with her ideas.

On a typical summer day, she could be found sitting in the screen porch with a crossword puzzle and a cat on her lap. The porch overlooks the lovely shade garden that she helped create. Among the beautiful plants and meandering paths in this amazing creation is a waterfall, a creek leading to a beautiful pond, a unique “crooked” shed and scattered everywhere are the sculptures and statues and treasures that Kay collected. And if you look closely, you’ll probably see at least one cat, enjoying the catnip growing in this magical garden.

She loved her cats which were all rescues and very appreciative of her kindness. She also volunteered to feed cats at a feral cat colony. Of the many cats she encountered, Kay gave a select few a legendary status due to the cat’s personality, free spirit, playfulness, and loving nature.

She is survived by her husband John Gasal, sister Sharon Johnson, and numerous nieces, nephews and cousins. She was preceded in death by her parents, and brother Vincent.

Kay will be dearly missed by her husband, her cats, and many friends and relatives. She is legendary.

A celebration of life gathering for friends and family will be held later this fall in Jamestown (date & location to be determined).