Kathryn L. Kalsman passed away peacefully August 22, 2019. Kathryn was born in Ft. Lupton, CO. to Harvey and Ethel Sells. Kathryn graduated from Ft. Lupton High School with honors and went on to study Pharmacy at University of Colorado, Boulder. Upon graduation in 1953, Kathy went to work at Presbyterian Hospital in Denver. As fate would have it, the hospital hired two part-time pharmacists from Fitzsimons Army Hospital to work nights. Mike Kalsman was one of those part-timers from the “Fitz”. Kathy and Mike met, and after promising to take her to Yuma and warmer weather, the two were married in 1956. Kathy loved her new home and started working as a part-time Pharmacist for Uptown Drug. In 1963, she took a permanent position as Pharmacist at Yuma County Hospital. She and Mike opened the Pill Box Pharmacy in 1967 and a few years later, purchased the Kachina Pharmacy.
Kathy was very involved in her church, Sierra Vista Presbyterian. She and Mike were instrumental in the formation of Hospice of Yuma, serving on the board of directors and as pharmacists providing comfort care for the terminally ill.
Kathy and Mike started a family in 1958 with the birth of their daughter, Lorra. They perfected having children with the birth of their son Phillip in 1960 but rolled the dice on one more child and in 1967, Michael was born. Kathy got involved with the Arizona Pharmaceutical Association as the first woman to be appointed to the Board and went on to become the Association’s first woman President in 1976. In 1989 Kathy was appointed as the first woman to serve on the Arizona State Board of Pharmacy by the first woman governor for the State of Arizona. Kathy was breaking glass ceilings before we knew there were glass ceilings. Kathy also served on the University of Arizona’s Dean Search Committee, Chairman of the Arizona Chapter of the American College of Apothecaries, Chairman of the Yuma County Pharmacy Association, Chair of the committee of Women of Pharmacy and an active member of the National Association of Retail Druggists.
In spite of her many achievements, she always said her proudest was being a mom. She will be missed by her children, Lorri (Tom) Podolsky, Phil Kalsman and Michael (Mary) Kalsman, and her grandchildren Alex, Taylor, Delaney, Erin, Cameron, Hannah, Molly and great-grandson Henry. Kathy was preceded in death by her husband, parents Harvey and Ethel Sells and her sister, Barbara Rosenbrock.
Kathy also leaves behind her Beehive family. Her biological family thanks them for the friendship and care given to her after the loss of Mike in 2017. The family would also like to thank Hospice of Yuma for the care she received in the short time she was with them.
A private burial will precede the memorial service to be held at Sierra Vista Presbyterian Church, Saturday August 31, at 10am. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation in Kathy’s memory to Hospice of Yuma or Sierra Vista Presbyterian.
