Kelly Gust, 66, died April 2, 2019, at Life Care Center in Mount Vernon, following a long illness.

The award-winning journalist, a more-than-40-year veteran of the newspaper business — mostly at papers in the San Francisco Bay Area — worked as a reporter, feature writer and daily columnist for a number of East Bay news outlets including the Oakland Tribune and Contra Costa (now East Bay) Times, where she began her career as a reporter and completed it as an editor.

Her writing abilities earned her a reputation as one with a deft, sensitive touch and a knack for capturing the personalities of her subjects.

She also had a charming sense of humor, which allowed her to tell tales as the butt of her own jokes, if dangling from the Carquinez Bridge or walking over red-hot coals at the urging of a believe-in-yourself-coach.

She also won prizes for her news reporting on numerous stories, including parts of an investigation of Oakland’s Chinatown, in the Tribune.

Her proudest production, however, was her son Sam, which she created in collaboration with husband Pat Craig, also a journalist.

Kelly, who was born in Drake, N.D., is survived by her husband Pat; son Sam; sisters Barbara Gust and Diana Giddens; and brother Fred Gust, as well as several nieces and nephews.

Memorial services will be scheduled in the near future.

Arrangements are under the care of Hawthorne Funeral Home, Mount Vernon.