Kathleen Marie (Fode) Edwards passed away peacefully on May 7, 2010, with her loving husband, son, daughter and pastor at her side.  Kathy lived a life of abundant kindness, caring and empathy, always thinking of others and putting others before herself.  Determination, integrity, a strong work ethic and an ever-present sense of humor were hallmarks of her well-lived life.  Of course, we who went to school with Kathy, knew all about her sense of hard work and good humor.  She was always a delight in every class.  In high school it was said that Kathy exhibited the characteristic of, "Variety, that divine gift that makes a woman charming."

Kathy was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota on November 15, 1940 to Carl and Ruth Fode.  She graduated from St. Louis Park High School in 1958 and had two children, James and Michelle, from a previous marriage to our classmate Lyle LaMere.  Their marriage lasted six years.  James LaMere was born in 1959 and lives in Denver.  Michelle was born in 1962, and is now Michelle Lamberton of Leesburg, Virginia.  Kathy has a brother, Bob Fode of Rossmoor, California. 

After being a single mom for five years Kathy met and fell in love with Pete Edwards, a DuPont engineer, in 1972, when he came to make a sales call at ITT Thermotech, where Kathy worked.  They were married and moved to Wilmington, Delaware in 1973, opening up a whole new world to Kathy and her children.  Since DuPont was located in Wilmington, they moved there and stayed for the next 30 years.   Kathy worked for Gilpin Mortgage, where she retired as their Human Resources Director and member of their Board of Directors.  In 2002 Kathy and Pete moved to Tucson, Arizona, opening a new chapter in their lives where they made great friends and came to call southern Arizona home.  Kathy tackled all of life's challenges with love, strength, focus and commitment, inspiring those around her.  She did not live life on the sidelines but was engaged and made things happen in their adult community with her can-do, take-charge attitude.

In June 2008 Kathy was diagnosed with Myelodyspastic Syndrome (MDS) with Refractory Anemia (RAEB).  When she discovered she had this rare blood cancer she responded with the same moxie she demonstrated in earlier bouts of thyroid and breast cancer.  She had been receiving chemotherapy ever since her diagnosis.  At first the chemo helped and she was feeling OK but this past late fall (November 2009) she told our classmate Karen Nordwall Daninger that the chemo was not working and something else had to be tried.  They talked about stem cell therapy as an alternative treatment, but it was never implemented.  In this, her last, fight, she earned the respect of caring nurses and doctors at Arizona Oncology, Arizona Cancer Center and University Medical Center.  She died in the hospital in Tucson, recovering from surgery for a bowel obstruction, a complication from which she just could not recover.

Kathy is survived by her best friend and husband, Pete; son, James LaMere of Denver; daughter Michelle Lamberton of Leesburg, Virginia; brother Bob Fode of Rossmoor, California and granddaughters, Larisa LaMere and Aiyana LaMere.  Daughter Michelle graduated from the Air Force Academy just 8 years after women were admitted to the academies.  Kathy was extremely proud of Michelle, as she was of all of her children and grandchildren. 

A Service celebrating Kathy's life was held at Resurrection Lutheran Church in Oro Valley, AZ on Saturday, May 22, 2010.  Kathy is loved and sorely missed not only by her family and friends, but by many in our St. Louis Park High School class who grew up with her and stayed in touch with her throughout her active and varied life.