Obituary: Kordla “Kay” Bartz

June 30, 1939 – May 29, 2019 

Kordla (Kay) Mae Bartz, 79, of Sturgeon Bay died at Pine Crest Village in Sturgeon Bay. She was born in Suring, Wisconsin, to Harold and Erma (Schuettpelz) Bartz. She graduated from Suring High School in 1957 and attended nursing school at Fort Wayne Lutheran Hospital School of Nursing in Indiana. She became a registered nurse in 1960.

Kay worked as a surgical nurse for her entire career. She was employed by several hospitals, including Stanford University, Chicago Wesleyan Hospital, and the University of Minnesota Hospital. She served on the surgical teams for some of the earliest heart transplants and many innovative orthopedic procedures. She was proud of her nursing contributions and always placed patient care as her top priority. She became a resident at Pine Crest Village in 2013.

Survivors include four siblings, David (Rachael) Bartz of Sturgeon Bay, Althea (Loren) Korte of Lexington, Massachusetts, Myrna (Robert) Eslinger of Long Island, New York, Harold (MaryAnn) Bartz of Plano, Texas, and many nieces and nephews. She was preceded in death by her parents and her beloved cat, Maggie.

The family wishes to thank niece Laurie Thiede for her loving companionship, the staff and residents of Pine Crest Village for the care and love they showed Kay during her stay, and the staff of Unity Hospice for the excellent care during her final days.

A memorial service will be conducted at 11 am on Monday, July 22, at Forbes Funeral Home in Sturgeon Bay. Inurnment will be at St. Joseph Cemetery. Visitation will be at the funeral home on July 22, 10-11 am. Online condolences may be offered at forbesfuneralhome.com

Memorials may be directed to the Ronald McDonald House (rmhc.org) in her name.