Kathryn Kelly

A beloved mother, sister and friend, Kathy died suddenly at 62 years old in Springfield, MO, on September 2, 2025, at 11:30 PM. Kathy was born October 10, 1962, in Little Rock, AR, to Julia "Judy" Cochran who preceded her in death.
Kathy grew up in Sherwood, AR, with her younger sister, Rose (Glass) Klein, which by circumstance, would be her longest lasting relationship; a bond deeply rooted in childhood and family experiences. Kathy welcomed others into her circle and developed life-long friendships from junior high school, discovered unknown family members through her love of genealogy, as well as kindred souls met along the way in her travels.
From an early age, Kathy exhibited a strong intellect, artistic aptitude, and an independent personality. In second grade, she won a school-wide art competition. In junior high she wrote and animated stories that centered around her friends. She wrote and acted in plays in front of peers. She excelled in school; graduated early and supported herself through nursing school.
Her firstborn, Richard Paul arrived and Kathy went on to study theater at the University of Conway at Arkansas. While there, she met the father of her other two children, Adam and Angel Rahman. Kathy, with her love of culture and diversity, left her small town life and moved her family to Dallas, TX and then Chicago, IL.
In her decades long career as a nurse, she cared for young, developmentally disabled children and gave much needed rest to their parents. But Kathy did not rest and always driven, finalized her studies overseas to become an M.D.
After raising her children and retiring, Kathy, with her "Trekkie" spirit, took to traveling - to seek out new places and people, to boldly go where she'd never gone before. This spirit, along with her love of cats sparked a new career in petsitting which allowed Kathy to spend months at a time in the United Kingdom. It was there that her love of history, natural beauty, and period romances culminated. When in the U.S. she continued to travel and lived life on the road with stops to see loved ones across several states.
Kathy eventually settled in Missouri with her decades long friend, Pepi, with whom she shared sisterhood, laughs, adventures and love of sunlit cruises, as well as one black cat, Max Banjer, who will miss her terribly.
Kathy's family and friends share Max's sentiments and as we also miss our brave, loving, smart and heroic Kathy, we wish you peace in the way Kathy would have said it herself: "Live long and prosper."