Edna “Kay” Goines

One of my blessings was to be a student teacher in Kay's kindergarten class in the fall of 1978. She never had children of her own, but said her students were her children. I wished I could've recorded her in action, such a wealth of information. I wanted to help her write a book. She made everyday special, but holidays were magical!

I have very fond memories of Mrs. Goines from taking her Kindergarten class in '65-66 (Carmel High class of '78). My twin sister and I both had her that year. I remember the class being very fun, the birthday celebrations, reading time and more.

The class of 1968 was the first class to have Mrs. Goines as their kindergarten teacher at Woods School in Carmel, California. We were
amazingly fortunate to have her as our teacher. Her room was warm and inviting, she (we) sang at the piano, she did all those auditory, visual and kinesthetic things I look for in my kndergaten teachers as their principal. Maybe she encouraged some of us to go into eduaction by her example. She was a friend of the family. She continued to work around books...

Kay was a wonderful friend and mentor. I took almost all of her UC Extension classes in the 1980s, hosting several at Westlake School in Santa Cruz where I taught the primary grades. I enjoyed phone calls and
visits with Kay in Carmel over the last 25 years. Things just won't seem right without her. I am glad to have many of the books and poems which she loved in my collection.

Mrs. Goines was just wonderful. I had her in Kindergarten at Woods School in 1961-62 and still remember the great times and definitely her reading to us. She had a wonderful life and I'm lucky to have been a part of it.

Kay was a splendid human being with an ageless spirit. She frequently attended Monterey Public Library's Stories for Adults series, which is where I first met her. She was almost legendary as an inspiration to readers, writers, storytellers, and others who love language, literature, and the spoken word. It was a blessing to know her.

Mrs Goines was my kindergarten teacher in 1961 at Carmel Woods School. I have the fondest memories of that time. My sister and I still laugh and make reference to "Benjamins Whistling" which if you were one of her students, (at least back then) you know what that means.
She got my education off to a great start and I will always remember her kindness.

Kay and I first met when her late husband, Larry, worked for my Late husband, Jerry Fry, some 50 years ago. She helped guide me through raising four children and when my children were almost grown, I decided to go back to school to get my teaching credential. She also mentored me through that experience, and I even did my student teaching in her kindergarten classroom. I had taught high school 20 years before and really didn't have a clue what went on in a primary classroom much less a...

Even though she’s gone - just looking at that photo of Kay makes me smile. I don't remember my own kindergarten teacher but I certainly remember Kay. I'll bet all three of my children do as well. Kay dealt with things in a completely unique way and the lessons she taught aren't forgotten.

One day my son (second child to have Mrs. Goines) asked if he could bring a friend home after school - and they wanted to walk home. He'd never walked home before but I wasn't worried. There were two...