Kathleen Mary Fitzgerald Puri

Kathleen (Kathy) Mary Fitzgerald Puri peacefully passed away at her home in Washington, DC on March 27, 2024, surrounded by the love of family and friends. She valiantly battled ALS, a rare neuromuscular disease, for the past several years with the grace and dry sense of humor she exhibited throughout her life. She is preceded by her parents William and Jean Fitzgerald and sister-in-law Catherine (Cathy) Fitzgerald.

Kathy was born on September 27, 1945, in London to Irish parents from Co. Kerry and Co. Leitrim. Her family immigrated to the United States through Ellis Island when she was three and settled in Connecticut.

She was a passionate and trailblazing nurse. In a career that spanned over fifty years she worked as an acute care nurse, taught nursing at St Francis School of Nursing and Chattanooga State and founded the company Fitsi Health. She was deeply loved in her field – as a friend, mentor, and visionary. Kathy was the recipient of many awards including the Tennessee Teacher of the Year Award, the Patient Safety Movement Innovation Award, and the American Nurses Association Innovation Award.

Kathy precedes her loving husband of 51 years, Arun, daughter Anita Puri and husband Robert (Rob) Legg, daughter Caroline Mitchell, husband Alex Mitchell and grandsons Langston and William (Will) Mitchell. Also, she is survived by brother William (Billy) Fitzgerald, sister Maureen Norton and husband William (Bill) Norton, as well as many beloved nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.

A funeral mass will be held on Saturday April 20, 2024 at 1pm at St. Peter’s Church on Capitol Hill (313 2nd St SE, Washington, DC 20003) followed by a reception. Additionally, celebrations of life will be held with family and friends in Connecticut and Tennessee later this year. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Kathy’s honor to the ALS Association (www.als.org), the American Lymphedema Association (www.lymphnode.org) or a local women’s shelter.