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With great sadness, the family of Maud-Kathrin Carl Crowell announces that she passed away of natural causes on April 5, 2025, just short of her 93rd birthday. She was the family’s matriarch, the last of an era, and we celebrate her long and happily varied life.
Born in Los Angeles, she was raised at a gold mining camp near Prescott and in Phoenix, Arizona. Her family later moved to Boulder City, Nevada, where she met the love of her life, Jack Crowell, just before they both left to attend the University of Nevada in Reno.
Married in 1953, they began married life in Telluride, Colorado, in a rental later described as a “1-Room Miner’s Shack.” When Jack joined the Navy ahead of the draft, they moved to Monterey, California, and when he received his commission as an Ensign, they went to Kodiak, Alaska. Jack served as a Navy meteorologist, and they soon welcomed their first child a few years before Alaska became a state.
Leaving the Navy, they returned to Jack’s hometown of Beatty, Nevada. They happily settled into small-town life, bringing three more bundles of joy into the world. For many years Maud-Kathrin was active in the civic affairs of the town. She was a member and President of the PTA, served on the Election Board and as Chair of the Citizens Advisory Commission, and was elected to the Town Board.
Raised during the Great Depression by parents who emigrated from Germany as adults, she always retained a certain thriftiness. She combined a sharp intellect with an incredible memory, a self-taught walking encyclopedia long before the dawn of the internet. She loved to read anything and everything, including the unabridged dictionary. A good writer, she penned scathing letters to the editor of various publications and wrote children’s stories which she shared with her grandchildren.
Maud-Kathrin always made time for her family. She was an excellent seamstress and enjoyed gardening. She loved Siamese cats, the family dogs, and a rotating menagerie of pets including kangaroo rats, ground squirrels, birds and snakes. She was an amazing cook and a skilled hostess. She often said her best achievement was teaching all four kids to become great cooks. Also known for her steely management skills, in mid-life she worked as the Beatty school secretary, terrorizing misbehaving and tardy students. (Meanwhile the three eldest children thanked their lucky stars they had headed for college and narrowly escaped this mortifying miscarriage of justice. Rich, not so much, since he was left to carry on.)
MK and Jack hugely enjoyed good food and wine. They travelled all over the U.S. with their 5th wheel, cruised the Baltic, Panama Canal, Australia and New Zealand, and visited Europe and Africa.
In later years, they moved to their beloved Reno where they continued to celebrate family and grow tasty vegetables and gorgeous flower gardens. Sadly, Maud-Kathrin developed macular degeneration and endured painful eye treatments with her usual stoicism, though it challenged and later prevented her from reading. She cared for Jack as his memory issues increased. After 70 happy and loving years together, he passed away two years ago, and the light went out of her life. She persevered in assisted living and, eventually, memory care. We hope the soul mates are together once more.
Maud-Kathrin is survived by children Andie Crowell of Reno; Julie Westfall (Joe) of Garden Grove, CA; Jeff Crowell (Debbie) of Meridian, ID; Rich Crowell (Marni) of Ft. Collins, CO; and sister Sonja Carl Gilligan (Mike) of Garrison, NY; granddaughter Kate (Josh) of Reno; grandsons Joe, Alex (Erika), Jim, Spencer (Karen) and Riley (Lindsay); and great grandsons Rex, Jasper, Jack and Rowan. She is also mourned by nephew Eric Carl and nieces Sonja Carl, Lisa Carl, Vianna Kreuder-Crowell Varner (Brett) and Stephanie Kreuder-Crowell Bruso (Brad).
The family wishes to thank the assisted living communities of The Seasons of Reno and especially Sunlit Terrace Residential Group Home for their kindness, expertise and compassion. Also, her loving friend Jahni Eade, who so enjoyed MK’s wit and wisdom. Jahni’s companionship brightened our mother’s last years.
A Celebration of Life will be held in Reno on Saturday July 26, 2025; contact andreacrowell@charter.net for details. Those wishing to remember her, please support macular degeneration research or the University of Nevada Knowledge Center
 Posted online on April 24, 2025
Published in Reno Gazette-Journal
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