Kathryn Hatfield

Mary Kathryn Hatfield, age 78, of Marysville, Kansas, passed away at her home on Thursday, May 8, 2025.

A visitation will be held on Friday, May 16, from Noon until 2 p.m. at the Evangelical United Church of Christ in Marysville. A funeral service will follow at 2 p.m., officiated by Pastor Peter Rockhold. Musical tributes will be provided by Deb Bruna and Sara Naaf, featuring the selections "For the Beauty of the Earth," "I Made it Through the Rain," and "In the Garden." Burial will take place afterward in the Marysville City Cemetery.

Kathryn was born March 4, 1947 at Kansas City, Kansas, daughter of Thomas Washington Hatfield (Bramer, MO) and Leola Louise Jenkins Hatfield (Dawn, MO). Attending elementary school as Mary Kathryn, she has been known to most as ‘Kathryn’ since Junior High. In 1965, she graduated in the upper 20% of Wyandotte High School, where she was a three-year member of the non-competitive girls’ synchronized swim team. Two years later, she graduated with honors from Kansas City, Kansas Community Junior College, and received an Associate of Arts degree. In another two years, she received her Bachelor of Science in Education degree from Kansas State Teachers College - Emporia. Following graduation, she would accept a position to teach girls Physical Education at USD #364, Marysville. Later, she obtained a Master of Science degree from Kansas State University.

She taught junior high girls physical education in Marysville for fourteen years before becoming a librarian at the Marysville City Library. During her years as a teacher, Kathryn was invited to membership in the local chapter of the Delta Kappa Gamma Society International and was an active participant in the local chapter. She was appointed as a state committee chairman. She went on to serve several biennials as chair of various committees, was the recipient of the Kansas State Achievement Award, was chosen to attend the DKG International Leadership Management Seminar in Austin, TX and was eventually elected as 2009-11 Kansas State president. In this position, she led the Kansas Society activities. She visited chapters across the state in addition to planning and conducting two state conventions.

Kathryn identified herself as a dear friend of ‘Mother Nature’. She loved the great outdoors and spent numerous summers as a canoe tripping guide for young people in the wilderness lakes of the Minnesota/Canada Boundary Waters Canoe Area. In later years, she would spend weekends in a simple, fold-out camper at various Kansas lakes. In addition, for many years, she planted and tended an array of outdoor flowers, pulled weeds, and mowed the lawn. She daily watered tubs, baskets, and a garden running the length of the front porch during the dry Kansas summers. She accepted mowing and snow shoveling responsibilities for many years at her home and later at the home she shared with a friend.

In memory of Kathryn, a memorial fund has been established, with details to be designated later. Contributions may be sent in care of Kinsley Mortuary.