ur dear sister, mother,daughter, and friend Katherine (Katy) Huston Alford passed away in her home in Ruckersville,
VA on July 29, 2023. She was 49. We love her immeasurably and miss her desperately.
Katy, a red-haired, green-eyed force of nature,was born on August 29, 1973 in Minneapolis,MN to Kathy and Bennett
Alford.After growing up between Minneapolis,Birmingham and Charlottesville, she graduated from Charlottesville
High School in 1991 and obtained her BA in English from Randolph-Macon University in 1996. She was most proud of
her years of distinguished volunteer service as a paramedic with the Charlottesville-Albemarle Rescue Squad.
Katy was always her own person-completely intolerant of BS and quick to offer sharp-but-loving admonishments to
nearby purveyors of it.Very clever and highly creative, she loved cooking, reading, drawing, beauty, decor, laughter,
and, especially in the last year of her life, singing. She knew how to make,season, or style just about anything, how to
feed an army (or a neighborhood), how to handle a crisis, how to run a pool table, how to find the perfect gift. She
knew how to move through hard times with humor, a level head, and a pair of excellent boots.A constant caregiver,
she adored animals and took in stray dogs, cats and wayward neighborhood children.She was our keeper of memories,
traditions,inside jokes, and family lore.She was a devoted daughter and sister,a loving wife and mother, and a
cherished friend to so many.
Katy is survived by her husband, Declan Hickey,and their son Ewan Hickey; her first husband, Will Tanner, and their
children,Grace and James Tanner; her father, Bennett Alford, his wife Lezli and her daughter Kelly Powers; her
mother's husband, David Gerdt; and her three siblings, Matthew, Joel,and Lucy Alford.
Katy will be cremated and her ashes scattered in Faber,Virginia alongside those of her mother, who passed away only
six months ago.An additional memorial will take place at Monticello Memory Gardens at a time yet to be determined.