She graduated from Richfield High School and Brigham Young University. She had a BSN and was a registered nurse. She married Richard Bernell McAllister on August 18, 1958 in the SLC LDS Temple. As a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints she served in all the auxiliaries. She was particularly talented in teaching the three year old “Sunbeams”, Young Women camp director, and Relief Society Homemaking Counselor.
At age 42, Kathryn was recruited into the Utah National Guard. She was the Chief Nurse of a mobile operating room and Hospital. (Think M.A.S.H.) She taught endless Soldiers how to scrub surgeries and provide other health care. She referred to these soldiers as “My Guys”. She retired as a Lieutenant Colonel. She spent nearly 40 years as a nurse in the Operating Room of LDS Hospital in SLC, Utah. She was integral to the development of a transplant team for Intermountain Health Care. She worked closely with physicians at the Vivarium at the University of Utah to perfect surgical techniques for the first Liver Transplant Team in the Western United States.
Kathryn was an accomplished seamstress and was proficient in knitting, crochet, embroidery and hemstitching. She shared this talent by teaching multitudes of others to do the same. She provided endless prom dresses, baby blankets, and created crocheted edged towels for family and friends.
Kathryn acted as a surrogate grandma to many nieces, nephews and neighbors who didn’t have a Grandma of their own. It was her mission to serve others at all times.
Kathryn’s life was interrupted by frequent injury and pain. At 18 months old she received a severe electrical burn when she put an active electrical cord in her mouth. This injury caused her some disfigurement. This created opportunities for classmates to tease and bully her. This early childhood treatment made her keenly aware of others and their feelings of inadequacy or shortcomings. This made her go out of her way to include and help these people. Kathryn endured multiple surgeries to help relieve pain from degenerative disc disease, bilateral rotator cuff, knee surgeries, near blindness from macular degeneration and many other injuries. She was ultimately felled by a bone cancer that is presumed to be spread from an unknown primary source. She is no longer in pain after 50 years of chronic pain.
She is survived by her husband, her siblings: Phillip, Karl, Steven, Alan and Keith Blomquist, and Janet Edwards. Her children: Vivian Dearden (Dan), Virginia Spenst (Jeff), Karen Spencer (Ben), and Richard McAllister (Reid Baty). Eleven grandchildren and 28 great-grandchildren.
Memorial Services will be held on Wednesday, September 11, 2019 at the Maple Way Ward, 380 South Fairfield Road, Layton, Utah at 11:00a.m. A viewing will be held Tuesday, September 10th from 6:00p.m. to 8:00p.m. and again prior to the funeral from 10:00a.m. to 10:45a.m., also at the Ward. Please share online condolences and memories of Kathryn at www.wasatchlawn.com
