Kathleen Marie Schnoor was the youngest and only daughter born to Fred and Kathryn Schnoor on January 10th,1919. She was precocious and bright, growing up surrounded by the love of her parents, two brothers, Marion and Fredric (known affectionately as "the boys") aunties, swarming cousins and homesteader grandparents. The universe for this family constellation was Bouton, a little Iowa farm town, barricaded by corn fields and traversed by county highway. The gravel and dirt streets without markers and sidewalks stretched by unseen tree roots became familiar walking paths for old tired farmers and young children. Mom in her little birdcage home of Rosetta, sang the wonders, praises, mysteries of Bouton. The staff at Rosetta can attest to the greatness of Bouton, Iowa.

Folk living through this time came to know privation and that changes in fortune could occur starkly, without warning. A phone ringing in the night at the Schnoor home heralded the loss of the bank to arson's fire. Everyone thought the bank was burned for insurance money, but that was never proved and Pop lost his job. Fred Schnoor was a resourceful provider and soon opened a hardware store and fixed farm windmills. Family life revolved around church and the faith that an Almighty and Knowing God would not forsake the ones he loved (witness everyone's huge garden plots). The Schnoor family attended the German Lutheran church (not the Scandinavian variety). Maybe it was during these formative times that knowledge of the 11th commandment was learned: Thou Shalt Not Waste Anything! Mom kept this commandment all her life.

Kathleen, valedictorian of the class of 1936, must have stunned the families and friends gathered by describing a trip on an "airship" where passengers were either moved ahead to the next flight or detained, as they completed their 12-year journey. Her educational journey continued in 1937, entering a nursing diploma school at Iowa Methodist Hospital in Des Moines. She graduated valedictorian in her class in 1940 and continued her education at Morningside College in Sioux City, Iowa. In 1943 she received her bachelor's degree and an offer of marriage from a smitten economics instructor, Mr. John Garwood. The couple was married on August 6th, 1943, in Indianapolis, Indiana, while John was on furlough from Fort Dix. In 1945, Kathleen received a certificate in Anesthesiology from Norwegian American Hospital in Chicago, Illinois. The young couple would eventually make their home in Hays, Kansas, where Dr. Garwood taught economics at Fort Hays State University and Kathleen worked part time as a recovery room and special duty nurse. In 1974, Kathleen completed her master's of science degree in education and psychology and was Kansas Mother of the Year. She taught as an instructor of nursing at the Baccalaueate and L.P.N. entry levels.

In 1984, the couple retired to Mesa, Arizona. Kathleen's brother, Fredric, and his wife, Arlene, also lived in Mesa and a dear close cousin, Lillian Shaver. The fivesome enjoyed many dinners together, completing the circle of their lives and the observance of "happy hour" on a patio drenched with the pink tones of sunset.

Kathleen is survived by a son, Jan Garwood of Springfield, Missouri, and a daughter, Shelley Hardin (Creighton) of Pocatello, Idaho, grandaughter Sarah Kayser (Jason) of St. Louis, Missouri, and great-granddaughers Ava, Lila, and Vivian, granddaughter Anna Wallace (Ryan) of St. Louis, and great-granddaughter Iris, grandson Jesse Garwood of St. Louis, Missouri, granddaughter Kate Hardin of Billings, Montana, granddaughter Helen Aoki (Tyson) of Salt Lake City and great granddaughter Mia and great grandson Ryo, and granddaughter Hanna Reichert (Shane) of Pocatello, Idaho and great grandson Cole, by a sister in law, Arlene Schnoor of Bouton, Iowa and a nephew Bill (Nancy) of Bremerton, Washington, and niece Carolyn Danielson (Carl) of Port Clyde Maine.

The best times we hold in our hearts are when we sat at the table enjoying a meal prepared with love for us.

Mom made a miraculous recovery from an illness we thought would take her life when she was 81. She and dad had a few more good years, but her dementia was like a force that couldn't be slowed or stopped. Dad covered for her. After he died, she stubbornly resisted assisted living or moving to Idaho. For seven months she lived on her own until circumstances became too dangerous for her. For the past five years, we knew a changed mom. We got to know more about her childhood and her inner self. We learned about a loved childhood dog named Peg and about the care her aunties Lizzie, Lottie, and Sopha provided to her. We learned how the boys worked at a gas station in Perry, Iowa and how her folks would go to Des Moines to dance on the weekend. We learned about her intense and persistent desire to go home. Home was always the walk from the schoolhouse, down the alley to home, and in the back door, where Mom was expecting her for dinner. One day she even looked at her walker and said, " I don't know if I can get this thing down the alley". She has been ready to go home for quite a while. She died on January 30th, 2012 at the age of 93.

We thank the staff at Rosetta for their meticulous and loving care of mom. She will rest with dad in Mesa, Arizona, after a family memorial service at Grace Lutheran Church.