On Wednesday, October 22, 2008, Kathleen Means (age 92) died peacefully in her sleep at her residence in the Carriage Hill Nursing Center in Fredericksburg, Virginia. She was attended by her daughter, Kathy, and her son-in-law, Jack Werner of Fredericksburg.
Kathleen Means, nee Lambert, was born in Pennsboro, West Virginia on December 12, 1915 to Zora and Thomas Lambert. She was one of six children, including Thelma, Pike, Edward, Goff and Lois Lambert.
She was married to Oren Glenn Means (deceased), and had three loving daughters, Beverly Means Le Beau, Linda Means Clemmens (deceased) and Kathy Elaine Means. She also had six devoted grandchildren, Susan, Carl, Carol, Margaret, Becky and Christopher and five great-grandchildren.
To the end of her life, Kathleen cherished growing up in a small, close-knit, mountain community where children played freely under the watchful eye of neighbors, teachers, and shopkeepers, all of whom knew her and her parents and siblings by name. She married and moved to Baltimore, Maryland where she resided for most of her adult life in Woodlawn. Special events included the births of her grandchildren, learning to drive at age 50 and buying her own car, seeing her first "real" mountain in a trip out west, and traveling with her niece to London. She loved trees, flowers, animals and all aspects of nature, as well as books and travel. She marveled over the changes and events she had seen in America and the world over the course of her lifetime. She was a modest and self-reliant woman who worked most of her life (retiring from the Social Security Administration), managed adversities, raised her children to have good values, and in the face of impairments in the last several years of her life, retained kindness and a sense of humor towards all. She will be greatly missed by her friends and family.
A memorial service will be held in West Virginia at a later date.
Laurel Hill Funeral Home, 10127 Plank Rd, Spotsylvania, is in charge of arrangements. www.laurelhillfuneralhome.com