Latane Key

God does little things for people, like creating the color purple, just to make people happy & give them pleasure in their lives. -Alice Walker, The Color Purple

If Latane Key were a color, she’d have been purple. This beautiful daughter of God entered the world on November 17, 1951 & was received by her heavenly Father on July 10, 2021. She strutted onto the Streets of Gold with restored lungs & unstoppable heartbeat fully whole & healed.

Latane was the faithfully devoted wife of Jackie Key & the loving mother of Kerry Earnhardt & JJ Key. Once her children successfully achieved adulthood under her support & encouragement, she proudly donned the esteemed title of grandmother. Mawmaw Tane was instrumental in the accomplishments of Bobby & Jeffrey Earnhardt as well as Blade Compton as they were growing up. Then she was blessed with another granddaughter Kayla Earnhardt to cherish & watch grow into a beautiful & confident young lady. Over the years she welcomed many bonus grandchildren into her home & heart with the most recent being James Staehler, son of Tamara. Bobby & Kimberly Earnhardt gave her the honored banner of great grandmother with the arrivals of Brylon & Kylianne Earnhardt, respectively. “Tane” was the bonus mother to many, many lucky kids throughout her adulthood & she will be earnestly missed by all of them. She was also a doting dog mom to her fur baby, Bailey who is now in the loving home of her dog dad, Barry Morris. Barry has been a God send to the Key family for decades & a benevolent, steadfast, & dedicated companion to Latane.

Latane had a sweet kindness about her that gave her an inviting presence. Her smile was warm & her laugh was the cutest giggle. She will be remembered most when the color purple shows up, Disney’s Dopey character is seen, someone offers a Sun Drop, or the unmistakable gavel sound plays at the beginning of a Law & Order episode. You couldn’t get her on a plane but anywhere she could go in a car, train, or boat, she was there especially when it involved going to a NASCAR race, a child’s sporting event or recital, or enjoying some simple R&R, gl’amping with her family. She adored being outdoors whether it was the mountains, the beach, or her own yard where she could always be found digging up or planting something to entice songbirds, hummingbirds, & butterflies. The wind spoke to her spirit in the stillness which is the reason for so many chimes surrounding her treasured home on Kenwood Drive.

Latane was preceded in death by her parents, her three siblings, & her husband. She is survived by her son, Kerry, his wife René & their family as well as her daughter Janene (JJ), her spouse Tamara & their family. She is also remembered affectionately by Barry Morris, many bonus children, & a large extended family.

Latane’s funeral service is scheduled for 2:00pm Sunday, July 18, 2021, at Lady's Funeral Home Chapel. Burial will follow at Carolina Memorial Park in Kannapolis. The service will also be streamed live at www.ladysfuneralhome.com/live.

In lieu of flowers, memorials may be made to Hospice and Palliative Care of Cabarrus County, 5003 Hospice Lane, Kannapolis, NC 28081.