Katherine 'Kay' Smith Bergsland

Katherine “Kay” Smith Bergsland, 79, of Bozeman, passed away Thursday April 10, 2014 due to interstitial lung disease. Kay was born in Evanston, IL to Robert Dawes Smith and Jeanne (Davis) Smith. She earned a BA in Education from Northwestern University in Evanston, IL and a Masters in Special Education from University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse. Kay married Tom Bergsland on September 7, 1957. In her career, she worked as a teacher in Evanston, IL, LaCrosse, WI and Rochester, MN, as well as at the University of Wisconsin-LaCrosse. Subsequently, along with her husband Tom, she owned and managed Elektro Assemblies, Inc. in Rochester, MN. Kay was an avid volunteer and gave back to the community through work with the Intermountain Opera, BCRFD Auxiliary, and as a Child Advancement Project (CAP) mentor in Bozeman schools. She will be remembered for her compassion, love of community and dedication to maintaining family relationships. Survivors include husband Tom Bergsland of Bozeman, MT; daughters Kristin (Tim) Caffrey of Oak Park, IL, Erica of Edina, MN, Emily (Robert Warren) of San Francisco, CA, and son Peter (Lauren) of Plymouth, MN.; and sister Virginia Smith of Elkhorn, WI. She was loved by eight grandchildren: Katie and Carrie Caffrey, Emily and Henry Rose, Rosie and Alex Warren, and Anna and Tommy Bergsland. She was preceded in death by her parents, grandchild Christopher Caffrey, and son-in-law Douglas Rose (husband to Erica).