Martha Kahn

1940-2018 Los Altos, Ca

Martha Breedlove Kahn passed away peacefully in her home in Los Altos on June 14, 2018, surrounded by her family after a sixmonth battle with cancer. She was born in 1940 in Houston, Texas, the second daughter of the late Iverson Delansen Breedlove and Sara Freese Breedlove. She attended Lamar High School in Houston and received a BA in History from Rice University. At Rice, she met her husband of 56 years, Michael Edwin (Mike) Kahn. They moved to Pasadena, California for Mike’s Naval duty and then to Palo Alto in 1964. Except for two short relocations they lived in the Bay Area ever since.

Martha’s family was always her top priority and abiding love. The well being of her husband, children, and grandchildren were at the top of her list. She was intensely interested in nutrition and healthy living. She was an avid reader and a researcher of family history. Gardening was a passion – she loved starting plants from cuttings and nurturing their beauty. She and Mike enjoyed hiking and adventure travel together. A deeply felt concern about the environment and the world led her to work with Creative Initiative Foundation and Beyond War. She and Mike moved to Massachusetts to lead work there in the 1980’s. Her enthusiastic personality, sense of humor, and wide ranging interests were appreciated by all who knew her.

She is survived by her husband, Mike, adult children Nannette Kahn Thomas (husband Peter Thomas McNamara) of Los Altos, David Alan Kahn (wife Julee Melissa Kahn) of Petaluma, and Joshua Delansen Kahn (wife Elizabeth Pirtle Kahn) of Hillsborough and seven grandchildren: John Edwin Thomas, Katherine Anne Thomas, William Michael McNamara, Savannah Grace Kahn, Ashlyn Hope Kahn, Cameron Breedlove Kahn, and Lauren Wakefield Kahn. She is also survived by her sister, Mary Nall of Houston, Texas and was preceded in death by her sister Barbara Seiler of Saluda, North Carolina.

A celebration of Martha’s life will be held at the Los Altos United Methodist Church, 655 Magdalena Avenue, on Tuesday, June 26 at 1:30 PM.

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Peninsula Open Space Trust (https://openspacetrust.org) or to your favorite charity.