KATHRYN JANICE GHAVAMIAN

1938 - 2020

January 26, 1938 - August 26, 2020 On August 26th, Kathryn Janice Ghavamian passed away at 82, surrounded by her family at St. John's Hospital in Santa Monica, CA. She was born Kathryn Janice Wright on January 26, 1938 in Chicago, IL to Chester and Mercedes. As a child, Kathryn took care of her ailing grandparents. This experience awakened her strong desire to help others. She showed great talent in art and was offered an art scholarship to the University of Chicago, but entered nurses training at Augustana Hospital in Chicago, IL where she graduated with a nursing degree in 1962. In 1960 she married Dr. Mohammad Taghi Ghavamian and in 1970 had twins, Maryam and Parviz. In 1976 the family moved to Iran, living through the unforeseen, tumultuous 1979 Iranian Islamic Revolution and beginning years of the Iran-Iraq conflict. During this dangerous time, Kathryn protected and nurtured her children and fostered their play and creativity, helping Maryam with art projects and encouraging Parviz's interest in music, history and astronomy. Through it all Kathryn's cheerful, compassionate and understanding demeanor inspired a very strong love and loyalty from family and friends. Upon returning from Iran in 1984 Kathryn re-entered nursing. Her exceptional nursing ability and hardworking, diplomatic nature led to a swift professional rise, culminating in serving as director of nurses at Berkeley East and Berkeley West Convalescent Hospitals and Santa Monica Convalescent Center. Kathryn demonstrated untiring devotion to providing a high standard of nursing care and heartfelt compassion to her patients and their families. She distinguished herself as an exceptional nurse and human being who left a lasting and profound impact on everyone who knew her. She was so very loved and respected and will be deeply missed by her family, friends and colleagues. Kathryn was preceded in death by her husband, Mohammad Taghi who passed in 2011, and is survived by her children Maryam and Parviz, son-in-law Ray, daughter-in-law Elizabeth and grandsons Owen and Teddy and several nieces and nephews in Chicago and Iran. A funeral service will be held at 12:30 p.m. at Forest Lawn Cemetery Hollywood Hills on Sept 28th.