Mary Kathleen Slack

TROY — Mary Kathleen (Kathy) Slack, age 72, of Troy, passed away Thursday, December 21, 2017 at her home surrounded by family after a lengthy battle with cancer. She was born, September 1, 1945, in Troy, to the late William Jacob and Mary Josephine (Baker) Fellers.

Kathy was considered by many to be the Matriarch of the Troy Skating Club, which her father helped establish. Kathy had been a member of the Troy Skating Club for over 50 years. She served on the board for many of those years in many different roles. Her accomplishments in the skating world are unmatched. Her life was truly about the love, passion, and service to a sport that grasped her heart as a child.

She was a national pairs competitor, a national level judge, and served as U.S. Team Leader for many international and world/ISU level competitions. Most notable, was her role as U.S. Team Leader for the 2014 Sochi Olympics. In addition, Kathy served as U.S. Figure Skating First Vice President - Midwest. She has also been a Jimmy Disbrow Award winner for her passion and service to skating.

While she was well known in the skating world and spent much of her life traveling around the world judging, she was a mainstay at Hobart Arena. She was present at nearly every TSC test session, took tremendous pride in the Annual Summer Skating Competition, and she would take the time to know all of the skaters; judge their tests, ease their fears, and encourage their skating. She was a kind and happy soul who just wanted everyone who skated, to love it. She was present in nearly every moment of Troy Skating Club history. From the Troy Skating Club Facebook post, "While it will be hard to take the ice knowing she won't be sitting at the judges table, we do know every time we get on the ice she will be there; guiding our blades and encouraging our hearts as she has always done."

Kathy is lovingly survived by her husband of 52 years, William H. Slack of Troy; children: Kim (Blake) Heim of Troy and Sean (Molly) Slack of Troy; grandchildren: Alex Heim, Parker Heim, Sean Slack, Jr., and Ethan Slack.

Besides her parents, Kathy was preceded in death by her sister, Cheryl Kay Spencer.

Kathy was a 1963 graduate of Troy High School. She had a passion for genealogy and travel, she traveled the world many times over. Kathy was honored by the mayor of Troy, with Kathy Slack Day, July 11, 2014 and a commemorative tree was planted at Hobart Arena this past spring in her honor. Kathy loved her grandkids, her family, and her many skating friends.

Services will be held at 11:00 AM on Wednesday, December 27, 2017 at Baird Funeral Home, with interment to follow at Riverside Cemetery, Troy. Friends may call from 9:00-11:00 AM on Wednesday at the funeral home.

Memorial contributions may be made to Hospice of Miami County, PO Box 502, Troy, OH 45373, The Troy Foundation, "Kathy Slack Scholarship Fund – Troy Skating Club, c/o The Troy Foundation, 216 W. Franklin St., Troy, OH 45373, or US Figure Skating Memorial Fund, 20 First St., Colorado Springs, CO 80906. Condolences may be expressed to the family at www.bairdfuneralhome.com.