Obituary of Kaye Eckhardt

Kaye L. Eckhardt passed away on Thursday, March 30, 2017, at the Bird House - Hospice Home of Johnson County, surrounded by her loved ones. Funeral services will be held at 1:30 p.m. Tuesday, April 4, 2017, at First Presbyterian Church in Iowa City, with a light reception to follow. Private family graveside services will be held at the Elm Grove Cemetery in Washington, Iowa. Visitation will be on Monday from 4 to 7 pm at Gay & Ciha Funeral and Cremation Service. In lieu of flowers memorial donations can be made in her memory to the Bird House-Hospice Home of Johnson County. Online condolences may be sent for her family through the web at www.gayandciha.com. Kaye was born in Washington, IA on August 5, 1950. She was a graduate of the University of Iowa, and spent most of her adult life living, working, serving, and making friends in the Iowa City area. Kaye worked for thirty years for City Carton Recycling as Senior Accountant, and was active in several businesswomen’s groups, the Brown Deer Women’s Golf League, and St. Andrew Presbyterian Church. She was the 1998 Woman of the Year for the Grant Wood Chapter of the American Business Women’s Association, and a 2016 Iowa Women’s Foundation Honoree. Through her work with City Carton/Ockenfels Family Foundation Annual Charity Golf Outing over one million dollars has been raised for the Children’s Cancer Connection. Kaye is survived by sons, Shawn Coons, (Carrie Smith-Coons) and Andrew Eckhardt (Lisa Downes Eckhardt); grandchildren, Ben and Birtukan(Birti) Coons and future granddaughter Eckhardt; sister, Connie Turnipseed and brother, Jon Turnipseed (Mary Jo Crossen Turnipseed). She was preceded in death by her parents, Merle and Bette Turnipseed.