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Friday, June 25, 2021

In Memory of Our Friend Katie Ward

Katie Ward
My friend Katy brought this to my attention this week.  So many times we lose friends and because of family situation we never get a chance to say goodbye or get notice. Katy told me today about how much she was part of Keystone and the many areas she help organize. I am sure she will be missed by many.

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 We are sorry to announce the passing of our beloved friend and sister Katie Ward.

She passed on Monday, June 14th in a care facility after finding out less than a month ago she had stage 4 brain cancer which had metastasized to her kidneys. The prognosis was short, but she underwent a few treatments of radiation so she could have a little more time with her daughter and granddaughters. Although tired a lot in her last days, she said she had no pain.

Katie dedicated much of her life in service to others. She served our country honorably, first in the Navy, and then in the Air National Guard which she retired from after 20+ years of military service.

She was an officer of TransCentralPA for over five years and a volunteer/member for twice that amount of time. She would consistently host dinners around Harrisburg before our support group meetings to give people a chance to forge friendships both within and outside the group and build confidence in themselves. She enjoyed helping people and giving back.

She actively participated in many community organizations such as the Keystone Business Alliance whom she helped plan their annual awards banquet for a couple of years.

Her favorite event though was the one she helped grow into one of the largest events in the country--The Keystone Conference, A Celebration of Gender Diversity. Katie took on many roles at Keystone; she was the volunteer coordinator, the off-site event coordinator, the security coordinator, the Registrar and many others for several years. At the Saturday Night Gala of the last Keystone, Katie received a much-deserved standing ovation for her contributions to Keystone and the Central Pennsylvania community.

With her passing, Katie leaves behind a legacy of generosity, kindness and compassion. We will miss you Katie--thank you for being our friend.

A memorial service is being planned in the afternoon for Saturday, September 11th. We will provide additional details about the service at a later date.



3 comments:

  1. A beautiful tribute to someone who was a true servant -- she showed real leadership.

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  2. I am so sorry for the loss of your friend. May she Rest In Peace.

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  3. Wow. What a loss for all of us. And relatively young. I never met her, but followed her on her Flickr site where she was quite prolific and had more than 21,000,000 views. She hadn't posted anything to her site since Jan. 31,2020. Anyway, icons will always be missed. For me the passing of Joann Roberts and Linda Phillips were more personal since I knew them. Yet through the power of the internet, I was connected to Katie.
    Thanks for the notification and the tribute.
    Angel Amore

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