Kathleen Kreutz Fernandez

Kathleen Kreutz Fernandez passed away on February 12th, 2018, at the age of 91. She was born in New Orleans, Louisiana to Catherine Lofaso and Walter A. Kreutz Sr., in 1926. She is preceded in death by her husband of 56 years, Edward Louis Fernandez Sr.; three brothers, Walter Kreutz Jr., Andrew Kreutz, and Wilfred Kreutz. She is survived by her three children, Deborah Fernandez Johnson Pope, Edward Louis Fernandez Jr. (Carin Clement Fernandez), and Rebecca Fernandez Blum (David Blum); five grandchildren, Nicole Johnson Taylor, Jordan Blum, Jeremy Blum, Laura Fernandez Dupre, and Philip Fernandez; and three great-grandchildren, Neva Taylor, Arlo Taylor, and Hannah Blum.

Kathleen graduated from Mercy Hospital School of Nursing as a registered nurse in 1947. She continued in that profession at various hospitals and capacities, including operating room nurse at Touro Infirmary and Ochsner Hospital, until her eventual retirement to her much-loved Diamondhead, Mississippi. Kathleen was also an accomplished artist, with paintings hanging in the homes of many friends, neighbors and relatives.

She was the family’s anchor, recently calculating that since her marriage to Edward, she had lived in 17 places. Supporting her husband’s ambition and career at IBM, she took care of the details of every transfer, from researching the best areas for residence, schools for her children, supervising the move and once settled, finding another nursing position for herself. She worked tirelessly to make these moves as easy as possible for her children.

She spent the last nine years of her life at Ormond Nursing Center in Destrehan, Louisiana. The family would like to thank the staff there for their love and care for Kathleen through the years.

She will be greatly missed as a loving and devoted mother and grandmother. A Funeral Mass will be held at St. Charles Borromeo Church, 13396 River Rd, Destrehan, LA (near Ormond Blvd.) at 11 a.m., Friday, February 23rd, 2018. Visitation will be from 10:00 a.m. till 11:00 a.m. In lieu of flowers, please make contributions to the Alzheimer’s Association, alz.org. Condolences may be offered online at www.leitzeaganfuneralhome.com