Merle Kay Hulse

Merle "Kay" Hulse, 85, passed away on February 28, 2026.

She was born on June 27, 1940 in Pocatello, Idaho to Hyrum and Hermoine Horton. She was named after her Aunt Merle, but always went by Kay. Kay was the baby of the family and was the last surviving member of her immediate family. Her sister, Fontella LaVon was eight years older than Kay and her brother Hyrum “Evan” Horton was six years older. She grew up on a farm in Tyhee, Idaho where her family raised black angus cows and alfalfa.

Growing up, she was spoiled with affection and treats from her neighbors, Charles and Mimi Ainsworth, who had lost their own twin children.

When she was a schoolgirl, she was upset at her parents because all her friends got to eat store-bought bread, but she was made to eat delicious homemade bread.

When she was a young girl in 1944, during World War II, German prisoners of war were working the fields and helping with the harvest. One of the prisoners grabbed young Kay, much to her father’s chagrin, picked her up, and gave her a big kiss. She must have remined him of his own daughter back home in Germany.

She was proud to be a student at Pocatello High School, even though it was the only high school around at the time. She graduated in 1958.

She loved to garden and grow flowers and plants. She especially loved roses, tulips, daffodils, and irises. During the Christmas season, she would always give amaryllis bulbs to everyone as gifts. She knew plants very well and knew all of the names and everything about them. This probably stemmed from the gardens she had grown with her family during her formative years.

She leaned canning from her childhood on the farm. Her family grew and canned vegetables to help them get through the difficult Idaho winters.

Kay was a master in the kitchen. She was an expert at canning and baking amazing treats, all from scratch. Her homemade spaghetti sauce that she made from scratch was highly sought-after.

She met and married the love of her life, Donald Hulse, in 1959. They had 3 children together, Patrick and Karen. They enjoyed 66 years of married bliss until Don’s passing in 2025. They shared the enjoyable hobby of creating birdhouses together. Don would build them and Kay would paint them.

Kay studied cosmetology at Idaho State University. As a Navy wife, she had a difficult time building clientele due to frequent moves, however, she found this as an opportunity to serve her fellow Navy wives and families on base.

One summer when Patrick was young, he and Kay got into a water fight with the garden hose. Patrick fled into the house, thinking he would be safe inside, but Kay followed him inside with the hose in hand.

She worked for the Southeast Idaho Council of Governments and later for the City of Pocatello. She went back to school to become a key punch operator and data entry specialist, a job she worked until she and Don both retired in 1999.

Kay was a loving mother, wife, grandmother and friend, and her presence will be profoundly missed by all who knew and loved her.

A funeral service will be held at 2:00 pm on Thursday, March 12, 2026 at Wilks Funeral Home, 211 W Chubbuck Road, Chubbuck, ID. A visitation will be held prior beginning at 1:00 pm. Burial will follow the service at Mountain View Cemetery, 1520 S. 5th Avenue, Pocatello, ID.

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