WILMINGOTN — Our dearest Kathy passed away peacefully on Tuesday May 10th in Wilmington, NC after a short and courageous fight against lung cancer.
She was born in Texas City, Texas to Theodore and Elizabeth Dougherty. She spent her formative years in Palo Alto, California and Ridgewood, New Jersey where she made friendships that would last her lifetime.
She absolutely loved to travel and passed with a long list of friends to visit around the world. She studied Cultural Anthropology, Journalism and Photography in Puebla, Mexico before settling in Southern California and graduating from California State University, Northridge.
She started her family in Venice, CA having her son Sean and daughter Ashley. They moved back east to Gastonia, NC in 1989 to be closer to family. In 2015 Kathy moved again to Wilmington, NC to be near her children.
Kathy was a generous friend. She cherished her friendships and was happiest just talking and connecting with her favorite people. She collected their stories, celebrated their triumphs and felt their sorrows as if they were her own. She never met a stranger. Her kindness and friendship was available to all without judgment.
Kathy was a lover of the world. Her travels brought her to explore Europe, the Caribbean, South America, and every corner of the US. Her fluent Spanish enhanced her connection with the people and cultures she adored the most.
Kathy was a photographer. From her earliest black and white negatives to her latest iPhone camera roll, her unique eye never stopped revealing the hidden beauty and meaning in the simplest of things.
Kathy was a storyteller. Her excitement for the written word was surpassed only by her expansive oral histories. Her wild imagination and deeply detailed memory conjured endless tales of her adventures as tall as they were true.
Kathy was a gardener. Her special passion for flowers in soil paired perfectly with her eternal optimism in life. Spring was her favorite season when her garden exploded with an overwhelming display of azaleas.
Kathy was a devoted Mother and a doting Grandmother. She gave everything she had to raising her children. This past year brought her immeasurable joy as she spent each and every day falling more in love with her one year old grandson.
Kathy is survived by her her beloved grandson Rio, her daughter Ashley, son-in-law Jacob, her son Sean, her brothers Michael (Madonna), Patrick (Diane) and Tim, her informally adopted daughter Pilar, dozens of cousins, nieces, nephews, in-laws who she loved dearly and also by all her friends across the country and around the globe who she cared for as deeply as family.
There will be a celebration of life mid-July in Wilmington, NC. Exact dates will be posted to Kathy’s Facebook page or please send an email to Kathylovesyouall@gmail.com and the family will be in touch.
In lieu of flowers donations can be made to Kathy’s favorite local nonprofit, Good Shepherd Ministries of Wilmington, Inc.
