Kisty grew up in the Gary neighborhood on Gary Street. She attended Stowe School, is a 1970 graduate of Morgan Park High School and in 1974 graduated from UMD. That fall she began teaching physical education and health in the Proctor School District. In 2010, after 35 years of teaching school, she retired and began working for Kinex Medical Company.

Kisty and her husband, Bill, currently live in the Smithville neighborhood where they raised their son, Aaron, who also attended Stowe, Morgan Park Middle School and graduated from Denfeld High School.

Kisty has many great memories of the countless hours that she spent (in both the winter and summer) at “The Shack.” With the restoration of the center, she hopes for others to create their own fond memories.