Kathleen Hackett Willis

Kathleen was born to William and Alice Hackett in Glasgow, Scotland on April 21, 1939. She graduated from Our Lady of St. Francis High School (Charlotte Street) and Notre Dame Teacher’s College, and went on to become a school teacher. Kathleen met Roland Willis at a dance in 1960 and were together ever since that first dance. They immigrated to the United States and were married on February 2, 1963. Settling in Rochester, NY, Kathleen and Roland raised their four daughters in the house on St. Paul Boulevard that they loved so much. They retired to St. Simon’s Island, GA, where they embraced island life, wonderful friends, and a enjoyed many visits from their daughters and grandchildren.

Kathleen was a wife, mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend. She shared her beautiful voice with others at parties, weddings, and church services. “Ave Maria,” “How Great Thou Art,” and “Danny Boy” were a few of her favorite songs to perform, and they played in the background during her final moments on her journey home. Kathleen never met a stranger, could talk with absolutely anyone for hours, and the extra-long telephone cord hooked to the wall phone was always an obstacle to navigate around in the kitchen. She loved to knit, sew, garden, read, and visit with friends.

Kathleen leaves behind her husband of 56 years, Roland, her daughters Alice Willis (Perry Stannard), Patricia Willis Allen, Mairi Willis (Laurent Manca), and Fiona Willis (Dan Sedlacek), her grandchildren Lars, Ailsa and Skye Hansen, Mairi and Bridgette Allen, Clara, Daniel, Alice Anne and Roland Sedlacek, Chloe Willis, and Leo and Alec Manca. She will be greatly missed by her sister and brother-in-law in Scotland, James and Patricia Reilly, their children Kathleen Anne and Martin Reilly, and her great nieces Niamh and Orlaith. She was “Aunt Kathleen” to so many of her lifelong friends’ children, and her daughters are so thankful for the many friends our parents made who became her family in America. We are all grateful that she left behind her famous shortbread recipe, and we ask anyone with the recipe, to please make a batch in her honor, and share it with your loved ones as Kathleen always did.

The Willis family would like to thank the wonderful staff of DaVita Dialysis Center South in Brunswick, GA, and the team at Dr. William Grubb’s office for caring for our mom so well. In Lieu of flowers, donations can be made to The Hospice of the Golden Isles, where our family spent the last days of our mom’s life together in peace and comfort.

Kathleen’s funeral mass will be on Tuesday, January 7, 2020 at 10am at St. Williams Catholic Church on St. Simon’s Island, GA. At a later date, a memorial service will be held in Rochester, NY and Glasgow, Scotland.