BOMBER MEMORIAL

KATHRYN LYNN "KATHY" NORTON ~ Class of 1974
February 17, 1956 - January 7, 2013



Kathryn Lynn Norton, 56, of Benton City, WA passed away January 7, 2013, after a 2-month battle with Creutzfeldt-Jakob Disease, a rare brain disease that affects only one in one million people worldwide and 250-300 in the U.S. every year.

Kathy was born February 17, 1956 in Richland to Bill and Betty Bell Norton. Kathy was always a caregiver. She took great care of her "kids" at Fairview Mental Hospital in Salem, OR for 16 years. She took care of her grandmother and father when they were ill, and she helped close friends and neighbors through their final days. Although she never had children of her own, she was an incredible adult figure for children of friends and neighbors – teaching them to do chores, take responsibility for their actions, count money, and much more. Kathy had a deep compassion for people and animals and was known to bring home strays, both people and animals. She loved gardening and yard work – at her house and her parents'. She frequently worked in the yard in the middle of the night with her headlamp on! She was a free spirit and independent. She owned her own lawn care business for a while. She also worked for Mayflower Moving.

Kathy had a wonderful, quirky sense of humor and often gave hilarious Christmas gifts (funny, but not suitable for print). She truly was one in a million, and we will miss her very much. The family would like to thank the staff at Kadlec Medical Center and Hospice House for their excellent care of Kathy.

She is survived by her mother Betty ('51), sister Kay ('73) (Chip) Hass, brother Steve Norton ('76) (Denise Ciarlo); as well as nieces and their children Crystal Williamson (Robbie), Reanna Norwood (Jacob, Justice, Jada, Derrick), Beth and John Mata (Devin, Gavin), Jessica (Nathan) Edgar (Adrian, Jamie), and Melissa (Lonnie) Black (Madison).

She was preceded in death by her sister and best friend Paula Norton Henry ('78) (September 13, 2011) and her father Bill Norton (July 21, 2010). She will be much missed by best friends Debbie and Renee.

Her memorial will be held at Memories at Sunset Event Center in Richland on the By-pass Highway, 2pm, Saturday, January 19, 2013.

Express your thoughts and memories in the online guest book at www.einansfuneralhome.com.