Mary Kathleen Kelly Vogt
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Mary Kathleen ("Kathy") Kelly Vogt - age 87 of Knoxville, Tennessee passed away on June 30, 2021. Kathy was a retired nurse and mission trip volunteer. Her experience in public health began during her affiliation with the Visiting Nurse Association in Louisville, Kentucky. She served her community as a public health nurse in West Virginia and received her certification in School Nursing working as a substitute school nurse in Wayne, New Jersey while her children were young. In later years she worked for the City of Oak Ridge Health Department. Her last position was with the State of Tennessee in the Patient Care Review division of the Bureau of Medicaid.
She was born on December 1, 1933 in St. Louis, Missouri to the late Edith Allene Beardsley Kelly and Carroll Harris Kelly. She graduated from Eastern High School in Louisville, Kentucky in 1952 where she was a band majorette. Kathy met her husband while attending Tusculum College in Greenville, Tennessee from 1952-1953. Kathy was a freshman and Joe was a senior. After that year Joe enlisted in the US Navy and Kathy went to nurses training at the Norton Infirmary in Louisville dating back to 1885 as the second school of Nursing in the south. In July of 1955 she married the love of her life; Joe Vogt, and they demonstrated enduring love to their family and community for 62 years. She later graduated from the School of Nursing at John N. Norton Memorial Infirmary on June 12, 1956. Kathy was descended from the Beardsley family. William Beardsley came to America in 1635 from England and was a founder of the town of Stratford, Connecticut. Her father Carroll Kelly was from Marissa, Illinois in St. Clair County.
Kathy was a faithful Christian, wife, mother, sister, friend and active member of the First United Methodist Church. She served as a member of the United Methodist Women and was President of her local chapter. She and Joe also co-chaired the church council. They traveled to Guatemala on many mission trips, the last of which were with dear friend Ron Fischer, pastor of the FUMC, Knoxville in 1999,2000 and 2001. The 2002 trip was canceled due to political unrest. They would fly into Guatemala City arriving at night and travel the following morning to Chichicastenango. They lodged there and would travel to 2-3 hours to service small villages. Tusculum College where she and her husband first met and where he served on the Board of Trustees as a Life Trustee has a classroom named in their honor. Mary Kathleen now joins her husband Joseph, her parents, Allene Beardsley Kelly and Carroll Harris Kelly, and her brother, Richard Harris Kelly in the loving presence of God.
Kathy is survived by their three children - Karen Vogt of Naperville, Illinois, John Vogt (Lisa) of Sarasota, Florida and J. Kelly Vogt (Karin), of Knoxville; grandchildren Aimee, Joseph II, and Alyssa Vogt, Julie, David ("Davy"), and Jacob ("Jake) Whitezel, and Allison and John ("Jack) Vogt, Jr.; and great-grandchildren, Caleb Vogt-Solis and Haven Monroe Vogt.
The family is thankful for those who have helped provide care for Kathy during the last couple of years. A Celebration of Life will be held on July 9, 2021 at 11am at the Click Funeral Home Farragut Chapel. Friends will be received from 10 - 11am prior to the service. A private burial attended by the family will be held at East Tennessee State Veteran's Cemetery where she will join her beloved Joe. Click Funeral home in Farragut is in charge of arrangements. In lieu of flowers memorials may be made to the United Methodist Women at https://www.unitedmethodistwomen.org/about/history/timeline.