Obituary

Kay G. Tharp Obituary
Kay G. Tharp, 86, of Grinnell, IA passed away January 23, 2025, at St. Francis Manor in Grinnell, IA.

A visitation will be held from 10:00 am to 12:00 pm on Wednesday, January 29, 2025, at Smith Funeral Home in Grinnell, IA.

A graveside service will be held at 1:00 pm, following the visitation at Hazelwood cemetery in Grinnell, IA. Following the graveside service a reception will be held back at Smith Funeral Home.

Memorials may be designated to the Grinnell United Methodist Church or to the St. Francis Manor Foundation, mailed in care of the Smith Funeral Home, PO Box 368, Grinnell, Iowa 50112.

Kay was born on May 14, 1938, to James Berkley and Edna Ruth (Clindinin) Gould in Marshalltown, IA. She grew up in the Grinnell area alongside her three siblings, James, Judy, and Karen. Kay and her family moved to Iowa City, and she graduated from University High School with the class of 1957.

On February 10, 1956, Kay was united in marriage to Lester Joseph Tharp. To this union the couple had three sons, Jeffrey, Phillip and Bradley.

Kay and Les lived in Iowa City while Les was in pharmaceutical school until 1958. They then moved to Ottumwa for 2 years, where Les worked for Matthews Drugstore. Les then bought Turner Drug in 1962 and then moved the store to Broad St. in 1968. Kay worked alongside Les for many years until they sold the store in March of 1999. They moved to Seeland Park in 2002.

Kay enjoyed traveling with Les to England, Scotland, Hawaii and Alaska. She was a member of the United Methodist Church, P.E.O., where she held numerous roles, and the Sunset Club.

Kay is survived by her sons, Jeffrey (Teresa) Tharp of Alva, FL, Phillip (Stacy) Tharp of Clive, IA, and Bradley Tharp of Pleasant Hill, IA; her granddaughters, Annie (Brad) LeBrun of Berthold, ND, Lindsey (Steven) Grys of East Peoria, IL, Elise Tharp of Clive, IA, and Chloe (Cassidy) Pekarek of West Des Moines, IA; two step grandsons, Dave and Travis Hobson; six great grandchildren, Olivia, Evelyn, Sophia and Isaac Lebrun, and Xander and Miles Grys; and her sisters, Judy (Terry) Freeborn of Grinnell, IA, and Karen (Carter) Thomson of Lake Ponderosa, IA.

She is preceded by her husband, Lester; her parents, Berkeley and Ruth; her brother, James Gould and sister-in-law, Kay Gould.