She was preceded in death by her parents, Samuel Walthall Johnson and Ogilvia Arrington Johnson of Bedford County, Virginia, and her loving husband, John Paul Bassett Sr., of Sharon, Connecticut.
“Kitty” was born in Roanoke, Virginia on April 21, 1931 and lived in Bedford, Virginia where she attended Franklin School, a one room school in Bedford County. Her mother either took her to school in a horse and buggy or she had to walk four miles to Franklin School and back in the evening. By the early 1940’s a bus picked up students and took them to Stewartsville School.
Her family then moved to the family farm in Fincastle, Virginia where Kitty graduated from Fincastle High School. She attended Ferrum Junior College, where she was head cheerleader, and graduated from Virginia Tech in 1954 with a bachelor’s degree in Home Economics. She was employed at the Virginia Tech extension service, and she met John who was a civil engineering student on the G.I. Bill. Kitty and John married in 1956 and stayed happily married for 61 years. They lived briefly in Staunton, Virginia where John worked for VDOT and in the early 1960’s they moved to Richmond where they lived out their lives.
In addition to raising four children, Kitty worked at Jack and Jill nursery school in Richmond, and then spent the majority of her career in retail furniture sales at Miller & Rhoads, Hecht’s and Macy’s . Kitty enjoyed spending time at the family farm in Fincastle Virginia, the outdoors, gardening with the neighborhood garden club, good furniture, and above all, spending quality time with her children and grandchildren, all of whom she has had a profound and enduring impact on. She attended Trinity United Methodist Church and later the West End Assembly of God.
Kitty is survived by her loving children Nancy, John Jr., William, and Susan Kish (Tom); and her beloved grandchildren Taylor, Catherine and Caroline Bassett, and Sarah Kish; her sister Alice J. Sweeney of Galax, Virginia; and several nieces and nephews.
Visitation will be at Woody Funeral Home, 1771 Parham Road Richmond, VA, Saturday February 23, 2019 at 1 p.m. followed by a memorial service at 2 p.m. Interment will immediately follow at Greenwood Memorial Gardens.
The family would like to thank Henrico Doctors Hospital and Hanover Health and Rehabilitation. The family is deeply and eternally grateful to Dr. Robert T. Turner and Dr. Elke K. Friedman for their compassionate care and support.
