KATHLEEN (KASTNER) MCLAUGHLIN

Kathleen McLaughlin Oct. 30, 1938 - July 8, 2014 BOWLING GREEN, OH - Kathleen McLaughlin, 75, of Bowling Green, Ohio, passed away, Tuesday, July 8, 2014, surrounded by her loving family. Kathleen was born in LaPorte, Indiana, on October 30, 1938 (the night of the War of the Worlds radio broadcast) to Herman and Madge (McPhee) Kastner.

She grew up in South Bend, attended South Bend Central High, and received her RN from S.B. Memorial Hospital. Later, she received a BSN from the State University of New York, Albany, and a Masters in Public Health from the New Jersey College of Medicine and Dentistry at Rutgers.

In addition to working at various hospitals in NJ, she established her own business in health education and assessment, working with numerous municipalities and townships. After coming to Bowling Green, she became the health education supervisor for the Wood County Health Department, retiring in 2004. She also served as a clinical instructor at the Owens Technical College.

She married a Notre Dame graduate, Thomas O. McLaughlin, in South Bend on May 28, 1960. They celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary in 2010 with family at the Toledo Zoo; a favorite place for the whole family.

Kathleen was an accomplished genealogist and aspiring prosopographer. Her most significant publication was a two volume, 2000 page, history and genealogy of the Nellis/Nelles family from their arrival in America in 1720 to 2002. She was a member of the Sparta, NJ, school board and was elected president of the Sussex County NJ School Boards Association. She held an appointed position on the Sussex County Community College Commission, and was president of the Sparta League of Women Voters.

She is preceded in death by her parents and her sister Marian (Jack) Nickels.

She is survived by Tom and her five children: Thomas Jr of Bowling Green, William (Elizabeth DeLong) of Conifer, CO, Maureen Parent (Mike) of Richmond, VT, Colleen McLaughlin (Jeff Litton) of Albany, NY and Pegeen Lorusso (Dan) of Averill Park, NY, and eight grandchildren: Samantha Parent, Sean McLaughlin, Sara Litton, Jenna Litton, Phoebe Lorusso, Sophie Lorusso, Bryn Parker, and Lily Parker McLaughlin.

She encouraged her daughters toward science and math and they became an engineer, an epidemiologist, and an archaeologist. Kathleen was the eldest child and was instrumental in helping to raise her younger siblings. They are: Michael (Marcie), Patricia Verlot (Mike), Margaret Kastner, and Timothy (Joan). She also leaves many wonderful nieces and nephews.

Visitation for Kathleen will be held on Friday, July 11, 2014 from 2:00-4:00 & 6:00 - 8:00 PM in the DECK-HANNEMAN FUNERAL HOME & CREMATORY, 1460 W. Wooster Street/P.O. Box 648, Bowling Green, Ohio 43402, Tele: 419-352-2171. Interment will be private for the family in the Oak Grove Cemetery, Bowling Green, Ohio. Online condolences as well as fond memories may be shared with Kathleen's family by visiting www.hannemanfh.com.

Published by South Bend Tribune on Jul. 11, 2014.

02/10/2023 EJS