As the daughter of a long-time midwestern family, her life began in Omaha, Nebraska on August 19, 1920. She and her two brothers and sister were raised by Richard and Laura Morton in the Benson neighborhood of Omaha. Her graduation from Iowa State University in 1942 with a Bachelor of Science degree was followed by marriage to Frank Arthur Kottwitz December 27, 1943. As the wife of a chemical engineer, she lived in Wisconsin, Iowa, Delaware, Iowa once more, and Texas, where they settled in Dallas in 1965.
Mary Louise devoted her life to her family and community. Early in her Dallas years, she lost her dear Frank Arthur, thus raising most of her 11 children on her own. She valued education and encouraged each of them to attain some post-secondary education. Mary Louise was a substitute teacher at Bishop Lynch High School for a period. Her participation in Saint Paul the Apostle Catholic Community, the Dallas Deanery Council of Catholic Women, the Home Economists in Homemaking, and the Electrical Women’s Roundtable were but a few of the many organizations that benefited from her active participation. She was an avid bridge player, a life-long learner, and lover of the written word.
In addition to her husband, Mary Louise was preceded in death by one son, Mark Francis. She is survived by 10 children and their spouses, Mary Elizabeth (Stan), Bernard Frank, Richard Arthur (Judith), Thomas Alfred (Janet), John David (Doris), James Joseph, Catherine Ann (John), Margaret Jean (Rick), Frank Alfred (Lea), and Erich Paul. She was grandmother to 14, great-grandmother to five, and aunt to Tim, Jim, Maureen, Dick, and Kathleen.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, October 19, 2018 at 11:00 AM at St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church in Richardson. A rosary and visitation is scheduled for Thursday, October 18 at 6:30 PM at Sparkman-Crane funeral home, 10501 Garland Rd, Dallas, TX 75218.
Contributions in Mary Louise’s name can be made to her parish church or the Benedictine Sisters of Mount Saint Scholastica.
St. Paul the Apostle Catholic Church Sister Mary Agnes Patterson, OSB
720 S Floyd Rd. Director of Development
Richardson, TX. 75080 Mount St. Scholastica
801 South 8th Street
Atchison, KS 66002
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