Kathryn "Katie" Heaton

Kathryn Ruby Heaton “Katie” (94) passed away peacefully on December 1, 2019 at Davis Hospice Center where she was surrounded by lots of love from family, friends and caregivers.

Katie was born February 5, 1925 in a small town of Sparta, Wisconsin to Marvin and Julia Bonsack. It was a hard life there for Katie but as luck would have it, her maternal grandmother talked her into going to the St. Francis School of Nursing in La Crosse Wisconsin.  When Katie graduated in 1946, she and several other student nurses decided to go to Cheyenne, Wyoming. (Memorial Hospital was then paying the most money in the whole USA for OB nurses at $125/ month. ). And as Katie always said “It was the best thing I ever did.  When I got off that UP train and saw my first cowboy….I knew I had landed in heaven! “

Katie had become a Catholic at her nursing school and found a very welcoming church at St. Mary’s. This was where she met her future husband George Lee (Bud) Heaton.  They were soon married in January of 1947 and began their life together.
Bud joined the Air Force in 1953 after their two children Robert and Mary Kay had been born.  They had a wonderful military life — traveling back and forth from the States to Europe every three years. The children also loved seeing all the new places while learning how to make new friends every three years.

Katie loved her life as an Air Force wife.  On every base she joined the Officers’ Wives Clubs, played excellent golf on the courses, bowled with every ladies’ league and was active in the Chapel activities.  Katie learned to paint so she could capture some of the beautiful places she saw.  She was also an excellent seamstress, knitter, and needle pointer.  She was especially proud to have been selected to needlepoint a church kneeler for the front altar at the Air Force Academy Chapel.

In 1966 Katie and family moved back to Cheyenne for Bud’s last military assignment at
F.E. Warren AFB. In 1975 Katie began a 39 yr. career with the Wyoming State Legislature.  She would collate the many, many bills that would soon cross those Senators’ desks and loved the wonderful and lasting friendships that came with the job.

Katie loved to watch her sports— the Wyoming Cowboys, the Packers, and the Rockies.  Later in life her favorite passion was dancing the night away to the 40’s music (like the Glenn Miller Band) with her very special friend Dick Mann.  She was also a member of St. Mary’sCathedral Guild and St. Anthony’s Circle and loved volunteering for any church activity.

Katie especially loved helping to care for her three wonderful grandchildren while their Mom was away flying with her job and their dad was managing a beer business.  All three grandchildren live in Cheyenne today with their families and will dearly miss their beloved Grandmother.  They were all  very close to her and affectionately called her “Yai Yai!

Katie was preceded in death by her parents, her two brothers, William and Duane Bonsack and in 1989 her beloved husband, Bud.

She is survived by her two children, Robert (Debbie) Heaton of Eugene, Oregon and Mary Kay(Craig) Lewis of Cheyenne, Wyoming; her grandchildren, Brittney (Joe) Webber, Katrene ( Matt Hartmann) Lewis, and Todd (Kassie) Lewis; and her great grandsons, Kipton Webber and Knoxton Lewis.

A Vigil Service and Rosary will be at 7:00pm Wednesday , December 11th at St. Mary’s Cathedral.  A Funeral Liturgy will be at 2:00 pm on Thursday, December 12th at St. Mary’s Cathedral with a reception to follow at the banquet room at the Metropolitan Restaurant. A private interment will be at Olivet Cemetery the following day.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to St. Mary’s Catholic School in honor of Katie Heaton.  The website is www.stmaryswyo.org or mail your donation to St Mary’s School at 2200 O’Neil Avenue 82001.

Services are under the care of Schrader, Aragon, and Jacoby Funeral Home and online condolences may be offered at www.schradercares.com .

And finally Katie’s family wishes to sincerely thank the exceptional staffs at Pointe Frontier, Life Care and Davis Hospice Center.  We appreciated all their loving and compassionate care for Katie during this last portion of her wonderful life’s journey.   God Bless You All!