Kristina Marie Lockaby
1972 - 2021
Kristina Marie Lockaby was born on
November 25, 1972, at St. Anthony's Hospital in Denver, Colo., and
died unexpectedly of cancer January 12, 2021, at Providence St.
Joseph Medical Center, Burbank, Calif.
Kris is survived by her partner, Andrew
Gavenda, of Burbank, Calif, her parents, Jed and Twila Lockaby, of
Newton, Kan., Andrew's parents, Ronald and Shirley Gavenda, of Tawas
City, Mich., and her little cat, Opal. Also surviving are aunts,
uncles, cousins and many friends from all chapters of her life in all
parts of the country.
She started traveling the world at two
when her parents moved to Belgium for two years. They then moved to
Newton where Kris grew up, started lifetime friendships and graduated
from Newton High School in 1991.
Kris attended the University of Kansas
and graduated with a Fine Arts Degree in 1996. She planned to use her
degree to travel and work in as many places as she could get to.
She started with an internship at the
National Gallery of Art in Washington, D.C., then worked at the
Portland Art Museum in Portland, Ore., the Nelson-Atkins Museum of
Art in Kansas City, Mo., the Frist Art Museum in Nashville, Tenn.,
the J. Paul Getty Museum and the Natural History Museum of Los
Angeles County, in Los Angeles, Calif. She was in the process of
getting her Master's in Museum Education from the Bank Street College
of Education, New York, N.Y.
Where ever she was living she enjoyed
having her parents and friends visit her but also loved traveling to
see them. She was always taking opportunities to explore new places
and meet new people throughout the country and across the world.
Kris embraced the people around her as
well as the possibility of new adventures ahead of her. She will be
remembered for her welcoming hugs and her laughter. For her delight
in the tiny, the quirky, and the unique. For her appreciation of
color, of artistry and of the diversity in the world around her. She
sought to celebrate joy for other people, she couldn't wait to meet
her friend's babies or toast another's accomplishment. She was fierce
in her beliefs and fearless in her adventures. She believed in
returning the love she felt from the people around her. And as her
parents, her life partner and her friends, we will all carry that
love with us.
She was preceded in death by
grandparents, Frank and Lena Berry and Hollis and Edna Lockaby, many
aunts, uncles, cousins, and her wonderful dog, Hank.
Cremation has already taken place and a
celebration of life will be at a later, safer date.
Her family asks that memorials be made
to the Nelson-Atkins Museum of Art, 4525 Oak Street, Kansas City MO
64111-1873 or the Caring Hands Humane Society 1400 SE 3rd St.,
Newton, KS 67114.
