Kathryn Marie Thomas, daughter of Gary Dale and Betty Kathryn (Emerich) Thomas, was born in Muncie on June 12, 1956.

She had one "stinky" brother, Gary Andrew Thomas, who she loved dearly. Kathy also had three nephews: Nick, Christian, and Alex, and one niece, Lizzy. Kathy made time for each of them, and she shared with them a special bond from the day they were born. The mother of her niece and nephews, Lisa (husband, Steve Murphy), was a perpetual thorn in her side, but she loved her like a sister just the same.

Kathy possessed a very strong work ethic and she was deeply committed to family. She was highly inquisitive, and loved learning new things about the world around her. She loved reading books and watching informative documentaries about anything that piqued her interest. Medicine was of particular interest to Kathy from a young age and she maintained this interest forever.

Kathy was a graduate of Albany High School, class of 1974, and of Ball State University where she received her BS/RN degree in 1978. During nursing school she spent many long nights at the dining room table with her dad. There were lots of tears, but her dad was there, and so too came her nursing diploma. Shortly thereafter, she began one of her greatest adventures when she moved to Indianapolis, working in many roles at St. Vincent's hospital. Most notably, she worked as an OR nurse and assisted in a great number of surgeries, many of which helping patients with mobility issues.

Kathy devotion to nursing lead her to join the Ball State Nursing Scholarship Committee and receive a Benny Award from Ball State and the Alumni Association. She maintained many of the relationships she made while at St. Vincent's for the rest of her life and she frequently kept in touch with her friends there.

Kathy was called to adventure; she loved sharing her adventures and could talk anyone's ear off about the many places she'd been to and hoped to visit again. Kathy also went on multiple cruises and vacations with her friends and family. Among her favorite places was the Carolinas. She tried to visit at least yearly, even after the summer family vacations to the North Carolina islands came to a close many years ago. In 2017 she made one of her dreams come true when she moved to Oak Island, North Carolina with her mother, where they lived for many years before moving back home. That same year, the spirit of adventure called her to buy a Hymer Van, which she drove and stayed across the country in. She enjoyed taking solo trips in the camper, but had her mother by her side in many of them.

Kathy was passionate about her family. She was proud of their accomplishments and hoped and prayed for their success and happiness. She felt especially close to Theresa (Kindt) Kulb, Margo (Allen) Brandenburg and Michael and Bobbie Sue Emerich. She loved her whole family deeply and fiercely and we love her right back.

It's impossible to list all of her loves and achievements, but Kat loved cats. One of her most adored, Miss Kitty, was her familiar little companion while she lived in Indianapolis.

Kathy is preceded in death by her father, Gary D Thomas, her brother, G Andrew Thomas, her paternal grandparents, Rolland Wilson Thomas and Agnes Pauline (Holden) Thomas, her maternal grandparents John V Emerich and Ella Blanche (Singleton) Emerich.
The family would like to give a special thanks to Kathy's classmates of 1974. Her classmates went above and beyond to help Kathy on her journey.

Services will be held at Garden View Funeral Home on Tuesday, October 24th at 2pm with a private burial service for the family following at Gardens of Memory, 10501 North State Road 3 Muncie, Indiana 47303.

We know that she's in Heaven, now, wearing those red heels and dancing with the Angels.
Rest well, Kathy
We love you so much