March 16, 1955-December 1, 2024
Kathleen Ella (Weideman) Johnston, 69, daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother, passed on December 1, 2024 in Gloucester, Virginia, after several long illnesses.
Kathleen was born on March 16, 1955 in Belle Fourche, South Dakota, attending school in Belle Fourche, graduating in 1973 from BFHS.
Kathleen would welcome Elizabeth on April 6, 1974. She worked as a nurse’s aide for Don Pratt Nursing Home with Myrtle Johnston in Belle Fourche. It would be Myrtle who introduced Kathleen to her son Ed, newly home from the Marine Corps. It was not long before Ed proposed to Kathleen wanting to establish their family and they were married June 22, 1979. They moved to Gillette, Wyoming, shortly thereafter where Kathleen found her calling as a wife and mother. Jacob was welcomed into the family on July 25, 1981. Kathleen and Ed would live in Gillette for 37 years. After Ed’s retirement from mining in 2016, Kathleen moved with him to Gloucester, where they remained until her passing on December 1, 2024.
Kathy, as she was affectionately known, was a devoted wife and mother. Her greatest joy and concern were for her family. Kathy was filled with pride over both of her children’s accomplishments and the life she built with Ed. She was well known to have never let a wrestler go hungry after any of Jake’s meets, to a wrestler cutting weight this meant the world. In her spare time Kathy was an incredibly talented seamstress and crafter making her own and her sister’s wedding dresses and winning competitions in the Festival of Trees in Gillette. All of her life Kathy loved the 4th of July planning and saving all year to make the annual trip to Belle Fourche, where she would partake in the festivities with her family and friends, in particular her sister, Linda, and best friend, Kay. With each passing year she would watch her family grow to include four grandchildren and two great-grandchildren and numerous extended family and friends.
Kathleen was preceded in death by her beloved parents, Adolph and Mildred Weideman, and her in-laws, Myrtle and Albert LeRoy Johnston. She is survived by her devoted husband, Ed; sister, Linda (Joe) Kapinus of Gillette; brother, Doug (Mary) Karlson of Fontana, Calif.; children, Elizabeth Johnston (Marty Windell) of Newcastle, Wyo., Jacob (Heather) Johnston of Gloucester, and their children, Hailee and Eddie; grandson, Brett Brumley of Spearfish, S.D.; granddaughter, Bailey Brumley (Diago Paul) and their daughter, Aurora of Gillette; great-grandson, Leeroy Smith of Gillette.
Visitation will be held on Thursday, December 12, 2024, 5-7 p.m. at Black Hills Funeral Home, Sturgis, S.D. A Rosary will be held at 10:30 a.m. on Friday, December 13 at St. Francis of Assisi Catholic Church in Sturgis, with Funeral Mass at 11 a.m. Interment will follow at Black Hills National Cemetery at 1 p.m.
Celebration of Life with lunch at the VFW in Sturgis, S.D., at 3 p.m.
Condolences may be left for the family at www.kinkadefunerals.com.