Katherine Garber Jordan

BIRMINGHAM Katherine Garber Jordan of Birmingham, formerly of Tuscaloosa, passed away Aug. 29, 2011.

She was preceded in death by her husband, Mortimer Harvie Jordan; and her parents, Dr. James Rhodes Garber and Elizabeth "Bessie" Evans Garber, all of Birmingham.

She was born March 10, 1917. She is survived by a sister, Charlotte Garber Rudulph of Birmingham; a daughter, Elizabeth "Betsy" Jordan Simmons (Al) of Birmingham; and a son, Mortimer Jordan, Jr. (Mary Nelson) of Tuscaloosa; and grandchildren, Katherine Simmons Berdy (Chris) of Birmingham, Albert Haston Simmons, Jr. (Scarlett) of Birmingham, and Margarette Elizabeth Simmons of Los Angeles, Calif. She is also survived by four great-grandchildren, Christian Simmons Berdy, Margarette Elizabeth Berdy, Sawyer Elizabeth Simmons, and Albert Haston Simmons, III; and by nephews, nieces, and cousins, to whom she was so devoted.

Known as "K.G." and "Tattee" to her friends and family, she graduated from Birmingham's Ramsay High School, Gulf Park College, and Briarcliff Manor in New York. In 1938, she married Webb Badham of Birmingham, who died while serving active duty as a pilot in the National Guard. In 1941, she married Mort Jordan, with whom she shared a life of mutual love and devotion for the next 39 years.

Following the War in 1948, K.G. and Mort moved to Tuscaloosa, where Mort was a law professor and administrator at the University of Alabama. There, they made many dear friendships that lasted throughout their lives. In 1955, the couple moved back to Birmingham, where Mort took an executive position with Southern Natural Gas (Sonat).

K.G. was a lifelong member of St. Mary's-on-the-Highlands Episcopal Church, where she was active in the Service Guild. She served in the Linly Heflin Unit and was Co-Chairman of United Way Women's Division. She was also a member of the Cambridge Study Club, Rockbrook Garden Club, Colonial Dames, and the Country Club of Birmingham.

While K.G. was active in her community, she will be best remembered as a loving person who unfailingly put friends and family first. Her love and caring for others was without reservation. That is K.G.'s gift to those whose lives she touched. May it continue and grow through reflection for generations.

The family extends special thanks to K.G.'s loving caregivers, Annie McWhorter, Anner Pearl Evans, Faye Bell, and Annie Mae Johnson; and Alacare Hospice for their constant dedication.

Services will be held 11 a.m. today, September 1, 2011, at St. Mary's-on-the-Highlands Episcopal Church with visitation to follow immediately after the service in the church parish hall.

Pallbearers are James G. Rudulph, John B. Rudulph, Jr., John B. Rudulph III, Michael E. Rudulph, Christopher S. Berdy, and John H. Bankhead.

K.G. dearly loved her church and her pets. Therefore, in lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorials be sent to St. Mary's Episcopal Church, 1910 12th Ave. So, Birmingham, AL 35205, or Alabama Spay Neuter Clinic's Special Needs Fund, 2721 Crestwood Blvd, Birmingham, AL 35210.