Kerith Elena Kirkwood

She was born on July 20, 1968 in Madrid, Spain to David Arthur Kirkwood and Sylvia Rae McCarty. She was the second to oldest of David and Sylvia’s 4 children, Adam, David, and Robyn. Her father’s military career eventually brought the family to Great Falls, Montana where she and her siblings were raised until her high school years.

Kerith graduated from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Dallas Texas, where she cultivated her extraordinary gift for dance. Dance remained central to her life, and she later studied ballet through a program at the University of Utah. In her twenties, she performed with the Oregon Ballet Theater until an injury ended her ballet career. Kerith continued to dance throughout her life, studying and performing tango in Argentina, and dancing for Raven Theater’s “Dancing with The Stars” to raise money for the Sonoma County fire victim relief, just to name a few.

Passionate about health, fitness and movement, Kerith became a certified Pilates Instructor and Massage Therapist. She went on to open her own studio in Healdsburg, California near Santa Rosa. For 25 years she dedicated herself to helping clients of all ages recover from injuries, restore mobility, and build strength. Her loyal community of clients treasured not only her expertise but also her dedication, compassion, encouragement, and care.

Outside of the important work at her studio, Kerith lived life with energy and joy. She loved tango and flamenco dancing, traveling, paddleboarding, hiking, and spending quality time with friends. She delighted in her cherished nephew, Soli, and held a special place in her heart for all animals—especially elephants and cats. She loved sharing photos and videos of cute animals with everyone she knew. She found joy in visiting her friend’s horse ranch, feeding carrots to the horses, and going for rides. Neighborhood animals were drawn to her: her neighbor’s dog would often come and bark at her front door because she knew Kerith had special treats, and another neighbor’s cat “adopted” her and visited faithfully, especially during her final days.

She was preceded in death by her father, David, her mother, Syliva, her sister Robyn, and her cousin Kwame Nkrumah. Kerith is survived by her brother Adam and sister-in-law Amber Kirkwood, her brother David Kirkwood, her nephew Soli Kirkwood-Pezzia, her brother-in-law, Tim Rhoades, her aunt Folami Nkrumah, cousins Anika, and Gamal Nkrumah, Alida Marchioni, Kathleen Alexander, Victoria Mendez, and the Jacobs family.

Her family and beloved friends will remember her for vibrant beauty (inside and out), fun sense of humor, sincerity and kind heart.

A celebration of her life and scattering of her ashes will be held at a later date.

In Kerith’s memory please consider a donation to The Elephant Sanctuary in Hohenwald, Tennessee: https://www.elephants.com, or simply honor her spirit with a random act of kindness.

The family wishes to express heartfelt gratitude to her wonderful community of friends and neighbors for all of their love, kindness and support.