Kayla Beth Stone, age 28, of Baldwin, WI, passed away too soon on September 12, 2022 at Sacred Heart Hospital in Eau Claire, with her family at her side, due to a bacterial infection. Kayla was born on July 19, 1994 to parents Terry and Judy (Zillmer) Stone. She was baptized and confirmed at Zion Lutheran in Woodville.

Kayla represented her home town Lions twice being named Woodville’s, first Little Miss Lena in 2002 and Syttende Mai Princess in 2011. She graduated from Baldwin/Woodville High School in 2013 before continuing her education at Mankato State University where she earned her undergraduate degree in Psychology with a minor in Gender & Women’s Studies and masters in Vocational Rehabilitation Counseling. Kayla has always been a go getter and loved being involved in different activities. In high school and college, she was active in marching band playing both the flute and piccolo. Kayla definitely had a competitive side to her and enjoyed playing volleyball and softball and was a part of the high school softball state champion team. She also performed in a number of school plays and loved watching sports and playing in the pep band, her favorite being hockey and football.

While Kayla was a student, she worked for Fun.com, Target, and when she was home from school, at the Phoenix in Baldwin as a hostess. At Mankato State she was the Homecoming Events Chair and Student Admin Assistant at Centennial Student Union. She was one of the founding members of the Student Events Team and was an influential member of this organization. She was the ultimate Maverick and helped the Student Events Team implant its vision as a student-led event planning giant at Mankato State University.

Kayla’s leadership and ability to advocate for students always had the students’ best interests in mind through innovation. She also was a founding member of the Maverick Machine marching band.  Kayla was a key leader in the Alpha Lambda Delta Honors Society. After graduating she was lucky enough to be hired on full time as a Vocational Rehabilitation Counselor for the state of Minnesota in the North St. Paul VRS office where she had an internship. There she helped teens and young adults that have different levels of disability get established. She absolutely loved her job and had found her calling.

Kayla was also very creative and loved to paint art themed after her favorite books and movies, especially Harry Potter and Hocus Pocus. She was proud of her Norwegian heritage and enjoyed cooking lefsa and rommegrot with her mom for family holidays, she also loved antique shopping, kayaking, waterfalling, hiking and breweries and wineries. Fall was her favorite time of year; she loved the colors, the weather, and Halloween. She bled purple with orange coming in a close second.

Kayla always stood up for what she believed in and looked out for anyone she thought was being mistreated. She had a special way about her that made others feel comfortable talking with her about anything. She will remain in the hearts of her parents Terry and Judy Stone; siblings Nathan (Zach) and Chelsea; grandfather Ron Zillmer; her beloved dog Luna and cat Kia; as well as many dear aunts, uncles, cousins and friends. She is preceded in death by her grandfather Warren Stone, grandmother Janet Stone, and grandmother Marilyn Zillmer.

A visitation for Kayla will be on Thursday, September 15, 2022 at Zion Lutheran Church in Woodville from 5-7pm and her memorial service will be held the next day on Friday, September 16, 2022 also at the church with her service starting at 11am with a visitation one hour prior to the service. Kayla’s service will be livestreamed through Zion Lutheran’s Facebook page.