Katherine McCarthy

Katharine "Kitty" McCarthy, of Douglassville Katharine "Kitty" (Schaeffer) McCarthy, died in her residence at the Villa at Morlatton on Tuesday, January 4, 2011. Born April 11, 1918, in Reading, at the Homeopathic Medical and Surgical Hospital, she was the daughter of Helen (Rehr) and William J. Schaeffer. Her early education was at St. Paul's parochial school, where slates were used in lieu of paper. A number of her years of elementary school were at Miss Stewart's Country Day School, an innovative school on the Bernville Road. Kitty graduated in 1936 from Mater Misericordiae Academy, now the Merion Mercy Academy, in Merion Station, PA. In 1940 she graduated from Rosemont College, a college for women founded by the Sisters of the Society of the Holy Child Jesus. She had a lifelong love of music, especially classical piano pieces, and was a voracious reader. In addition, Kitty had a quirky sense of humor, irreverent at times, which she shared freely. Through a college friend, Kitty met John D. "Jake" McCarthy, while visiting in Bradford. They were married in May, 1942, shortly before Jake was drafted then deployed to England with the 8th Air Force in World War II. After Jake returned, they eventually settled in Reading, where Jake managed the family business, Schaeffer Dry Goods at 348-352 Penn Street. Together, they owned and operated the business from 1962 until 1979 when the Penn Street institution closed after 100 years of serving the community. The wholesale operation continues under the management of their son Michael J McCarthy. Kitty and Jake spent summers at their farm property in the Oley Valley starting in 1947, and were fulltime residents there with their five children from 1959 till 1998. Kitty sat for many years on the Pike Township Planning Commission, serving as chair several times. In 1998 they moved to an apartment in the Wynnewood at Wyomissing complex, where Jake died in 2000, after almost 58 years together. Kitty later moved to the Villa at Morlatton, in Douglassville, and enjoyed seeing old friends from the Oley Valley and the St. Gabriel's Church prayer group Kitty is survived by her brother, William J. Schaeffer Jr. of Douglassville; her sister-in-law, Mary E. Rae of Bradford; her brother-in-law, William McCarthy of Phoenix, AZ; as well as 14 grandchildren, four great-grandchildren and many cherished nieces and nephews. She will be greatly missed, especially by her five children and their spouses, Kathleen McCarthy Lang and David Lang, of Wayland, MA; Elizabeth A. McCarthy and James Alt, of Tamworth, NH; David J. McCarthy and Yachai [Changpanapan] of Broomall; Maureen McCarthy Diamond and James Diamond, of Portland, OR, and Michael J. McCarthy and MaryAnne [Bradford] of Oley Township. The family is very grateful to the staff of the Villa at Morlatton and also TriCounty Home Health and Hospice of Pottstown for the tender care given to Kitty. Friends may call at Blankenbiller Funeral Home Thursday January 6th from 7 to 8:30 p.m. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday January 7th at 11 a.m. at St Catherine of Siena Church, 4975 Boyertown Pike/Rte 562 in Exeter Twp. with Father Ronald Bowman officiating. Interment of the cremated remains will be held at Gethsemane Cemetery on Monday January 10th at 11 a.m. Contributions in lieu of flowers can be made in Kitty's memory to the Rotary Club of Reading Foundation - 4-Way Test Contest (PO Box 4032, Reading, PA 19606) or Futures Rehabilitation Center, Inc., (One Futures Way, Bradford, PA 16701. Funeral arrangements are by Blankenbiller Funeral Home, 423 Main St, Oley, PA 19547. To send a condolence online, please visit blankenbillerfh.com.