- Date Of Birth: December 17, 1935
- Date Of Death: December 12, 2021
- State: Illinois
Catherine Elizabeth Cobb Kazmierczak of Potomac, Maryland passed away on December 12, 2021, at Holy Cross Hospital in Silver Spring, MD with family by her side after fighting a courageous battle with pneumonia.
She was born on December 17, 1935, at Our Saviour’s Hospital in Jacksonville, IL to Charles Hugh and Helen Gertrude (Graef) Cobb.
Catherine is survived by two children, Andrea Burgess of Burkittsville, MD and Alex Kazmierczak of Seattle, WA; and two grandchildren, William Burgess of Damascus, MD and Sarah Rishi (Abhishek) of Salisbury, MD.
She is also survived by three sisters and one brother, Dorothy Keller of Jacksonville, IL, Lois Maloney (Bill) of Avon, IL, Tony Cobb (Betty) of Fairfield, OH, and Helen Jones of Seattle, WA. Catherine also leaves behind many nieces and nephews, and their children, who adore her and share Catherine’s love of family.
Catherine and her Cobb siblings had a tight bond, although they lived all over the country. In their early adulthood they carbon copied letters to each other to stay aware of family updates. Later in life, phone calls on a weekly basis kept them in close touch with one another.
She was predeceased by her parents; her brother-in-law Paul Keller; and nephew Bradley Jones.
Catherine was born into a large German Irish family in Jacksonville, IL. She attended Routt High School and went on to earn a bachelor’s degree from Marquette University. She taught at Cold Spring and Lakewood elementary schools in Potomac and tutored many others and had a profound impact on her students. Some of them would stop by and see her long after leaving her classroom. She traveled around the world, including a fascinating trip down the Amazon River.
Catherine also lived in Calcutta, India for a short time where she witnessed the generosity of Mother Teresa, which had a great impact on the rest of her life. She was dedicated to the arts and worked at the National Gallery of Art and volunteered at several other museums in Washington DC including the Smithsonian and the Hirschhorn national museums up until her passing. Catherine preferred sports cars and knew her way around a manual transmission. She took great pride in her garden and the upkeep of her house which was adorned with numerous pictures of family, friends, and her travels to Europe, Thailand, & Costa Rica and many other memorable locations. She enjoyed a diverse circle of friends and brought hope to so many with her relentless positive attitude and hard work.
