If you knew Kathey and would like to contribute memories or photos, please contact Allison.

Memories

"I will always have fond memories of Kathey for her cheery "Hellooo" almost every morning, keeping her staff in line with her bullwhip "Sweet Pea" and the days she brought her dog, Walker, wearing his official Pink Palace ID badge, to work with her. I miss both of them very much." (Tammy)

"Kathey worked her way up from console operator to the head of the theaters department. She loved and was dedicated to the Museum. Not only was she a wonderful boss but she was also a dear friend and will be sorely missed by our staff and the museum. She leaves a legacy that will be very difficult to follow." (Alex)

"I remember the time Kathey and I were returning from a conference in New York. A hurricane blew in and we had to make a quick exit from Laguardia airport. The only room available in Manhattan was a suite at the Waldorf Astoria, so we took a wild cab ride in the middle of the storm to a hotel in Ft. Lee, New Jersey. We rode out the hurricane holed up in our room watching really bad movies on the Sci Fi Channel. Kathey had checked her luggage at the airport, so I lent her a T-shirt for night clothes. We laughed a lot because we were stuck in New Jersey due to a hurricane instead of the tropics or some place exotic." (Tony)

"My best memory is of Kathey at the Race for the Cure last year. The smile on her face says it all. I feel honored to have participated in such an important event with such a wonderful person." (Mez)

"Kathey told me her staff and her department were so much more than co-workers - they were a family." (Pat P.)

Every payday without fail Kathy would round the corner and said "How's my favorite person in the whole wide world." No matter what kind of day she was having. She always found a kind word. She would see the big picture when you felt no one else understood. (Michelle)

The moment I walked in the door to start working at the Sharpe Planetarium, Kathey was there to greet me with a big hug and told me how happy she was to see me. I looked forward to getting a happy "Good Morning!" from her almost everyday I came to work after that. Kathey was very patient and helpful while I was getting to know my job. She was positive and upbeat about everything going on in the planetarium and observings. She was also supportive of my ideas for planetarium events. Kathey was a lot of fun when we went out to lunches and movies. She loved telling about the antics of her pets and other stories from her life. Kathey was an excellent boss and friend. I really miss her. (Jim)

Several years ago, SLO (The Society of Low Energy Observers) went to observe a grazing occultation of a star by the Moon. If we positioned our telescopes at the proper location, we would be able to see the star "blink off and on" as it passes behind the mountains on the Moon. To make sure that an accurate record of the time was kept, I brought a short-wave radio for WWV time cues and a tape player.

We all met up at a gas station off I-55 in Arkansas at 2:00 am. (That's right, 2:00 AM. Astronomical events never occur for your convenience.) The group then headed out to a pre-selected site. The other SLO members took their telescopes and set them up along a line, about 1000 feet apart, which would be perpendicular to the line of the graze. The idea being that each group would see a different part of the graze event. All observations would later be sent to the Astronomical League for compilation. So, here's this line of amateur astronomers standing by an Arkansas cotton field in the middle of a hot August night. Of course, the mosquitoes slowly became more and more intense the closer we got to the 3:06 am event time. They became so frequent that Kathey could see them illuminated inside her telescope but we were ready. Kathey was set. I was set. The tape player was set and running. AND THEN THE BIG MOMENT CAME!!! and went....the star slipped past the edge of the Moon without so much as a single flicker. Kathey and I were about 500 ft. outside the occultation path. Others in the group had seen the graze but not us.

I later played back the tape. I am probably the only person to have a three minute recording of two people slapping mosquitoes with WWV time cues in the background. (Bill)