Doris Mae Rausch

Doris Mae Rausch, 84, passed away on Thursday, September 26th, 2024.
Doris was a Catholic by faith and a member of St. Peter the Apostle Catholic Church.
She was preceded in death by her parents, Jesse and Rosezella Leet; sister, Barbara Nash and infant sister, Rosaline Leet; brothers-in-law, Charlie Wilkins and Gregory Hammond.
She is survived by her loving husband of 64 years, Henry "Hank" Rausch; children, Christopher Rausch (Susie), Victoria Carrier (Kenny), and Michael "Mike" Rausch; grandchildren, Stephanie Rausch, Amber Ulanowski (Rob), Brandon Rausch (Kim), Eric Todd (Nikki), and Erin Todd (Troy(D)); 12 great- grandchildren; sisters, Jessica Wilkins, Carolyn Hubbard, Donna Hammond, Gwynne Oban (Richard); and brother, Leroy Leet.
Doris' celebration of life service will be on Tuesday, October 1st, at 7 p.m. at Ratterman Southwest Funeral Home, 4832 Cane Run Rd. Her visitation will be from 1 p.m. until the time of service.
In lieu of flowers expressions of sympathy may be made to St. Jude’s Hospital or Wounded Warriors Project.
Doris was born on September 21, 1940 in the Portland Neighborhood (on 29th St. near Portland Ave.) of Louisville. She attended St. Cecila Grade School and Ursaline Academy. While attending Ursaline (at East Chestnut & Shelby Streets) she worked as a tray girl (nurses aide) at the old Sts. Mary & Elizabeth Hospital (12th & Burnett Ave.) After graduation Doris was an office clerk for Irving Kahn Carpet Wholesalers 6th & Main). Doris and Hank were married on August 6, 1960 at Our Lady's Catholic Church (35th & Rudd Ave.) Their honeymoon was spent at Wig-Wam Village near Elizabethtown, Ky. Doris was a stay-at-home wife, decided early in their marriage with temporary timeout from parenting with work at Top Value Stamps Redemption Store (8th & Broadway) and the 2000 US Census becoming the office operations manager for the Louisville office (620 S. 3rd St.) Raising three children she made time to work for St. Clement Church and School. Eucharist Minister, substitute teacher (for any grade level) and Sunday School minister. She sold Rip-Offs at the Friday and Sunday Bingos for over 15 years. She was active in the sports played by her children, football, softball and basketball (both sexes). In life she enjoyed reading a good romance novel, educational books, and cruising. She took a cruise with a group of people called BOPTAC (Bunch of People Taking a Cruise), consisting of family and friends from St Clement Parish. 52 people in all. The years leaving up to the time of her death were filled with family outings of various nature from birthdays to sports achievements. She was totally dedicated to being a wife, mother and Memaw, with time for her sisters and brothers.
On July 23, 2024 she was involved in a serious motor vehicle accident on the Buechel By-Pass at Buechel Bank Road. Hank was driving Doris and a life-long friend to lunch with the old school friends of seventy years. Doris received multiple blunt force trauma injuries. She broke her neck in 4 places (wore a stiff neck brace for 10 weeks), four broken ribs on her right side (which were still healing at her death), a torn Aorta (which healed on its own) and hematoma the size of a softball on her left hip which was bleeding internally. The hospital stopped the internal bleeding but did not sew up the wound fearing infection. Doris spent the next sixty-five days flat on her back, going from hospital to hospital to address the ramifications of any new medical issue. From the Trauma ICU of U of L Hospital (original injuries and a ventilator with a tracheotomy to breath better) to Kindred Hospital for weaning from the vent and trach removal, to Jewish Hospital Heart Critical Care Unit for resolvement of a Heart Rate versus Blood pressure Issue, and finally a return to the Kindred Hospital for final resolvement of her breathing issues. During these trips she had pneumonia several times and each time an infection was an accomplice, she never gained a significant improvement in breathing.
On September 26, 2024 after being removed from an oxygen supply of 100% over her Trach and breathing on her own, she was removed from the Oxygen supply at 1:07 PM and Doris expired at 1:23 PM, just 16 minutes.