Obituary of Kathryn Ann Kness

Kathryn Ann Kness, 37, of Duluth, Minn. passed away Tuesday, Jan. 17, 2017 after a year-and-a-half-long courageous battle with colon cancer. She was born in Duluth on Dec. 25, 1979 to John and Beverly Lahti (Sturgis). Katy was a 1998 graduate of Duluth East High School. She earned a degree from Lake Superior College in architectural drafting. Katy enjoyed designing kitchens and the lasting friendships from her years working at Arrowhead Building Supply in Duluth. Katy and Jeremy married in 2007. In 2009 Katy became a stay-at-home mom when "little man" Avery was born; in 2012, Avery's feisty little sister Amelia came along. Katy was passionate about many of the fiber arts, and had an amazing ability with knitting and cross-stitch and was also quite skilled at sewing and making clothes. She read often, and enjoyed knitting and watching various TV shows and movies in the evening. She and her children never missed a week at the library, and they met their goal of playing at every city park in Duluth in a single summer. Katy became close friends with an abundance of other moms/parents. They all made the similar comment that Katy possessed a unique positive energy about her and that they all felt at ease when around her, an opinion shared by her husband, children, parents, siblings and other family and friends. She is survived by and will be greatly missed by her loving husband Jeremy; beloved children Avery and Amelia; father John Lahti; mother Bev Sturgis; stepfather Dave Beran; sister Meg and her stepbrother Tony; mother-in-law Nancy Lemke and stepfather-in-law Thomas Lemke; father-in-law Mark Kness and brother-in-law Nathan Kness; and her very good friend Danelle French, and her husband Dan and two children Adeline and Penelope. Katy's family would like to thank all their family, friends and Jeremy's employers and coworkers at Arrow Lift, who were all so caring and so generous with monetary gifts, lovely cards, gifts for the children, food, and the gift of time spent with Katy and her family. Katy's family would especially like to thank the staff and friends at Laura MacArthur Elementary for their kindness and concern for Avery and Amelia, and the nurses, doctors, social workers, staff and especially Dr. Goueli at St. Luke's Cancer Center. CELEBRATION OF LIFE: 3 p.m. to 6 p.m. Monday, Jan. 23 at the Lakewood Town Hall, 3110 Strand Road, Duluth.