Kathleen Mary Pfaffenberger

Born March 31, 1933 in Trail, British Columbia, Canada

Died April 6, 2017 in Lewisville, Texas

She is survived by her husband of 55 years, Richard, as well as son Paul and wife Maggie, son Mike and wife Kim, son John and wife Kelly, daughter Katy and husband Eric, son Steve and wife Mary Lou. Affectionately referred to as “Us” and “Them”. Also survived by a bunch of grandkids and some great-grandkids (not that she didn’t think they were all great).

She grew up in Quebec where she hung out with future NHL Hall of Famers and had her picture on a postcard. She was an accomplished pianist as a child, earning the Silver Medal for the Province of Quebec. At 17, she moved alone to NYC to pursue her nursing degree at Saint Mary’s Nursing College. She worked as an OR nurse for a world renowned brain surgeon whose patients included Clark Gable and Elizabeth Taylor. She then moved to San Francisco to pursue her nursing career. It is here that she met Richard “Dick” Pfaffenberger at The Library, a very cool bar that all of us as kids wanted to resurrect when we grew up. They wed at Old St. Mary’s Catholic Church in 1962 and moved to Manhattan Beach to begin raising a family. They relocated to Los Alamitos and finished out their family with 5 kids.

The next 25 years were a blur of baseball games, vacations, motorhomes, pools, washing Catholic school uniforms, Fist Communions, Confirmations and weddings. Somewhere during this time (October 1978), they moved to Irving, Texas and continued the madness. She continued to work off and on in nursing while raising her 5 children. When they finally got the last one to leave the house, she was able to retire and spend her time delivering Meals on Wheels, working with Altar Guild, spending time with her Red Hat Society friends and playing Bunco.

They moved to Grapevine on April 18, 1995 and also welcomed a new grandson that day!

Everywhere they lived, from Reagan Street to Oak Meadow to Willow Creek, they made fast friends with their neighbors and became an integral part of the neighborhood. She could often be found knitting a blanket or hat for a friend or grandson/daughter. When not knitting, she loved reading and drinking wine. Sometimes together, sometimes independently. Her faith was the bedrock of her life, she lived her faith daily and was a frequent Mass-goer. She always found a way to become involved in her parish and was a constant source of guidance for her family. She made us take our hats off in the house and always said grace before meals. She taught her sons how to be gentlemen and her daughter how to be a lady. She made sure that chivalry was not dead when it came to her children!

We are comforted and blessed to know she will continue to watch over us.

The testament to this woman’s life is not only the ones that called her wife, mom, grandma and great grandma but those who knew her and loved her because of her service, compassion, spirit and devotion to Christ.