Kristin Nelson Casey - Napa Valley Register
Kristin Casey passed away on July 23, 2015 as a result of injuries suffered in a traffic accident near Calistoga. Kristin was born to Dean and Betty Smith of Birmingham, Michigan on December 29, 1946. She spent her childhood and teen years in Clarkston, a small town just north of Detroit. Kristin took to school like a duck to water, and was a top student throughout her academic career. Kristin began writing letters to the editor while still in grade school, and later lobbied (unsuccessfully) to make the dragonfly the Michigan State Insect. Kristin attended Michigan State University year-round so that she could obtain her teaching credential in three years. Kristin moved to Roeper School for the gifted and talented in 1972 and divorced Jay the following year, at which point she changed her name to “Casey,” after an Irish great-grandfather. Sandy worked as a commercial river guide and Kristin was off on whitewater adventures in Utah and Arizona during school vacations. When Kristin’s relationship with Sandy ended in 1978, she made the boldest move of her life. After a photo safari trip to Africa, she headed west in a Dodge van “on the road to find out. Source: napavalleyregister.com
