Kathy Kendall - 2/13/26

We gather today, still somewhat reeling and in shock at the news of Kathy Kendall’s death. There is much today that still doesn’t make sense to us, which magnifies our grief even more. But even as we mourn today, we have the hope and promise of resurrection and new life. Jesus offers us comfort today in the same we He offered it to his friends when they were grieving.

25 Jesus told her, “I am the resurrection and the life. Anyone who believes in me will live, even after dying. 26 Everyone who lives in me and believes in me will never ever die. Do you believe this, Martha?” (John 11:25-26, NLT)

I have great confidence that Kathy Kendall believed this. More than that, she lived her life relying on this truth. Kathy had faced some health struggles in the last couple of years that caused her to consider her own death. She was confident of where she was going and wasn’t scared to die. We may not have been ready for her to go, and she may not have been planning to go just yet, but I can tell you, she was ready.

And it is that promise of life beyond the grave that gives us hope today. The loss and grief we feel today is real. We are left to navigate life without the friend, mother, grandmother, sister, confidant, and prayer partner that many of you had come to rely on. That loss is real, and it is perfectly natural to mourn what we have lost in that regard. But our grief is tempered by the reality that Kathy has lost nothing and gained everything. Today she is where she has always wanted to be. She has seen Jesus face to face and experienced the glorious reunion with those faithful family and friends who went before.

As we begin today, it seems fitting that we turn to the Lord and ask for His help as we grieve. So will you pray with me?

Our Heavenly Father, we confess today that our hearts are heavy with the pain of loss. We were not ready for Kathy to leave us yet. We confess that we don’t understand the timing or the reasons things have happened as they have. But we trust that You do. Grant us your comfort today as we grieve. Help us to celebrate the gift of Kathy’s life, even as we mourn her death. Surround us with your strength, we pray, in Jesus’ name. Amen.

Kathy Jane Kendall was born on February 4, 1954, in LaHarpe, Illinois, the daughter of Robert and Jean Cratsenberg. She received her bachelor’s degree in education from Western Illinois University and retired after more than 20 years in elementary education. Most importantly, she was a beloved sister, mother, and grandmother.

Kathy loved her grandchildren, her children, her sisters, her friends, and her community. She was an inexhaustible listener and nurturer, with a deep affection for the delicate, the underregarded, and the fragile. She instilled in her children and grandchildren a love of history, antiques, and above all, a love of God.

She passed away on February 8th, 2026, just 4 days after her 72nd birthday in Iowa City.

She is survived by two children, four grandchildren, and two sisters. She was preceded in death by her parents.

HYMN: It Is Well

This has been a strange week for me. On the one hand, I’m deeply saddened by Kathy’s sudden passing. Like many of you, the timing simply doesn’t make sense to me. She had fought hard through the last year after battling melanoma and was seemingly back in a good place with her health. She had sold her house and moved to Mt. Pleasant and was enjoying getting settled there. It seemed like things were finally getting settled…and then she died suddenly. Like many of you, I struggle to wrap my head around why God would choose to act in the way He has.

But the other side of the coin for me has been the opportunity to talk to so many of you and hear your stories of Kathy’s faithfulness, her care, the fact that she put others first, and the consistency she showed in her faith. Strangely, I often thought this week, Kathy’s funeral is going to be fun, because we have much to celebrate. And that’s my hope today. I want to fixate not primarily on the loss we have experienced, but to celebrate the life we all got to enjoy. My hope is to remind us of Kathy’s faithfulness and her spirit, and in so doing remind us of God’s faithfulness as well.

If there was one thing that was constant in every conversation I had this week, it pointing to Kathy’s faith, and how it wasn’t simply something she did on Sundays but was at the core of who she was. Her faith in Jesus drove the way she spent her time, the way she treated others, and even the way she did her work.

Many of you described Kathy as a prayer warrior and a confidant. I know most mornings after they had both retired, she and Jan would call each other on the phone. While they always spent time catching up on the necessary chit-chat of the day, they also always made time to pray together. Kathy cared deeply for her friends and family, and they were a constant subject of prayer. She was wonderfully faithful in lifting people and their situations before the Lord.

She had a deep concern for her family to know the Lord in the same way that she did. She understood the peace, hope, and confidence that came from knowing Jesus, so she prayed often for her children, their spouses, and their children. She prayed for other members of her family too and constantly looked for ways to help them grow in faith.

Kari said Kathy was willing to do anything for her children. When they were struggling in school, Kathy observed in their classrooms and researched all the options in the area for them. When she decided that the local Christian school would be best, she helped make sure they were able to go and thrive there. For a period of time, she and Jan even homeschooled Ethan until he was able to go back to school and succeed again. She also researched youth groups and churches in the area so the kids could be involved. That impact spread through the rest of the family as well.

When Ryan graduated from high school, he was not in a great place spiritually. Kathy knew this and gave him two gifts for graduation. The first was a small New Testament Bible she hoped he would read. The second was a tin of cookies with the promise that it would be refilled any time he brought it back. Kathy knew the cookies would provide opportunities for conversation and wanted to find ways to love him practically, even when that wasn’t the easiest thing to do. Ryan said that when he was at his lowest, that little New Testament was there, so he picked it up and started reading—and the Lord led him on a different path which has changed everything.

Kathy cared deeply for her family and their spiritual condition, but the same was true of her students. She and Cindy Jones taught together for 13 years. They loved being partners. They would start each day praying together, often praying for their students specifically when they knew something was going on in their lives. Cindy said that depending on the day, they might also get together during the day to pray as well. And sometimes they’d get together after surviving a tough day to pray.

Kathy loved teaching. She knew that she was doing more than simply teaching kids to read and do math facts. She saw her career as an opportunity to love the children under her care the way Christ had loved her. So, each student mattered. Each one was worth her time. She had a soft spot for those that others overlooked and worked hard to make sure no one fell through the cracks.

Kathy had many great friends and memories from her years teaching. I’m told that for many years, she, Cindy Jones, and Cindy Pollock would attend a conference near Chicago. They would take the school’s old 15 passenger van. They knew that with the big van, they could haul 15 people…or the three of them could haul all the presents they needed for their families! They always made time to shop for their families while they were in the big city (I think they may have also learned about teaching some too!)

Apparently, one of the highlights of the trip was always dinner at Red Lobster. Both Cindys loved lobster and had lobster dishes that they were keen to order. Kathy also had her regular order there too. But hers was chicken strips! She wasn’t big on lobster, but knew she liked the chicken strips. She also knew that her friends loved lobster, so she was eager to go with them, even if it wasn’t really her thing.

That seemed to be a common theme in Kathy’s life. She was happy to support others in whatever they did. It didn’t matter whether it mattered to her, what mattered was whether it mattered to you. She was always looking for simple ways to show love.

She loved (and received) love often through food. This past week she had told Kari she was going to milk her birthday celebration for all it was worth, so she was enjoying many sweets! But she viewed food as a way she could minister to others as well.

She always brought ham loaf and sugar cookies to the family Christmas celebrations. The Wilhite kids remembered their Aunt Kathy’s butter cookies. I’m told that when Becky made them, the kids informed her that they still weren’t as good as Aunt Kathy’s were. Jeannette Ford recalled a time when she had written a memory on a funeral tribute page of some sponge candy they had once enjoyed together. A few days later, Kathy showed up at her doorstep because she’d found some sponge candy at a shop and thought of her. She was wonderfully kind and thoughtful.

I was a recipient of that kindness several years ago too. As I was going through my divorce, Kathy knew that I would likely need to find a new place to live. She mentioned to me that she had been thinking about moving and if I was interested in her house, we could work something out. She was wonderfully flexible with me. When she realized she was going to need to stay in the house to care for her dad, she apologized profusely, though I reminded her she was doing the right thing and God had a plan and a purpose. (He did!)

She took great care of her parents as they got older. She and her sisters took turns visiting and caring for their mom, and when her dad needed help, she went to his house each day to check on him. Eventually, he came to live with her until he passed.

She loved La Harpe. She felt such a connection to this community and the people she had come to know and love here. She believed it was a truly special place. That’s why after she sold her house, she and Jan bought a trailer in town (their vacation home), so they could have a place in town where they could come visit once more. She understood the blessing of living in a small town where people care for each other.

Something I appreciated about Kathy was that while she was kind and loving, she was not afraid to speak up when something wasn’t right. I know of several times when Kathy confronted people who were doing the wrong things, but even then, it was done with love and grace. She desired what was best for people, even when that meant having a hard conversation.

Kathy was not a selfish or materialistic person, but she did love her antiques. She was adept at spotting antique bargains because she had worked with her dad as an assistant at auctions for many years. She loved looking for a good bargain, and she knew the story behind many of the pieces she had. When she moved out of her house and needed to downsize, she tried to contact the families who had originally owned the pieces to see if they would want them. Many of them ended up back in the family they had come from.

She loved shopping in general and finding bargains. Some of that was for her, but many times she was on the lookout for things she thought others might like as well. And she wasn’t one to discard things that were meaningful to her. She told Jeannette that she was still using the address book she had given her in 1972!

In conversation, Kathy was not one to dominate, as she preferred to listen and consider her words carefully. But she still had a great sense of humor and loved to laugh—even if it meant laughing at herself. She told of a time when she had worked at the Quill office in 1975. She had ridden her bike to work, but when she went to get off it, somehow managed to get her pantleg caught in the chain. She was attached to the bike and couldn’t get loose! So she had to waddle into the office, still attached to the bike until she could find scissors to cut herself loose! She said she wished she’d had video of that, because it had to be quite the sight!

When they were in high school, Kathy and three others ended up dressing up as huge marshmallows for their Christmas concert as their choir sang A Marshmallow World. I think she may have been grateful there was no video of that.

Kathy loved music. She played in the band in high school as a percussionist. She sang with The Believers group for many years and had many dear friendships that continued from even until today. She still enjoyed being involved in music, still singing in our church choir and playing in the bell choir.

She served in many different capacities in our church. She was a dedicated board member, serving for many years on our Diaconate or Christian Education committees. I always appreciated her wisdom and creativity. Her heart for the Lord was evident in the way she helped to lead.

Being a teacher, and for many years, a single parent, Kathy was never flush with money. But she worked hard to provide for her family and ensure they had all they needed. She was also good at adjusting her lifestyle to match her income. She was wonderfully practical in that regard. She worked many jobs through the years, often on top of her teaching. She worked at the Quill and the Post Office. She worked at the Bargain Barn with her dad for many years as well. She also got her real estate license and flipped a house! She was incredibly talented in so many ways, but it almost seemed as though she didn’t understand how gifted she really was.

In all things, however, her faith shined through. No matter what she did, Kathy wanted to use all of her gifts and abilities to serve the Lord. I think that legacy will be the thing that I remember most. As we look around the room, I suspect there are many who can tell you that their faith is stronger because of Kathy’s. Many were touched by her kindness, her love, her prayers, and her thoughtfulness. Though she would have hated us spotlighting her today, my hope is that she would be proud of the way the Lord used her to impact so many others.

HYMN: Trust and Obey

One of the strange parts of being a pastor is that you sometimes have conversations with people where they tell you what they want their funeral to be like. It’s a weird conversation, but it is helpful to know. I didn’t have a conversation like that with Kathy though. Neither of us were expecting her funeral to come so quickly. But as I thought about it this week, I knew exactly what she would have told me. She would tell me: make it about Jesus! Make sure everyone knows the hope that only He can provide.

So today, I want to remind you of the truth of the gospel—the story of what Jesus has done for us.

I mentioned at the beginning that our grief today is tempered by the reality of life beyond the grave. We have confidence that even though Kathy’s life on this earth has ended, she is more alive today than she ever has been. She is living in the presence of her Savior and is enjoying life as it was meant to be.

But the danger in saying this is always the potential for people to get the wrong idea. You see, most people believe that if you’re a good person, you go to Heaven when you die. And that seems like a pretty reasonable assumption. But there’s a problem. The Bible tells us that none of us is a good person! Most of us are shocked to think that, because we figure we try to do good things and avoid doing bad things as much as possible. We look at Kathy and consider, how could she possibly not be considered a good person in God’s eyes?

The answer is simple. God is perfect. So, the standard of “good” is perfection. No matter how good we are, we all missed that standard long ago. We imagine that doing good things somehow balances out the bad things we’ve done. But it doesn’t. We can’t erase the bad things we do. They are crimes against the Lord, and there is a penalty that must be paid. In other words, on our own, we’re all in deep trouble.

But God loved us so much that He sent Jesus as a perfect sacrifice for our sin. He paid the penalty we deserved so we might be forgiven. But as Jesus told Martha in John 11, that sacrifice applies only to those who live and believe in Jesus.

Kathy Kendall undoubtedly did that. She not only believed the facts about Jesus but lived her life seeking to serve Him. She wasn’t hoping to earn salvation, she knew she couldn’t do that. But she wanted to live in a way that honored her Lord and showed that she trusted that His way was best.

Today, we are reminded that death is a part of everyone’s story, and we don’t know how much time we have left on this earth. That brings new urgency to the message of the Bible. We must each decide what we will do with Jesus. We can ignore Him, imagining that this is a fairy tale, or that there will still be time, or that this stuff doesn’t really matter. Or we can recognize that we only have one hope: to trust Jesus with our lives and our eternity. I pray you will use this day to settle that in your own heart. I am confident that nothing would bring greater joy to Kathy Kendall than knowing that she will one day see you in Heaven with her.

My hope today is that each of us can learn some lessons from the life of Kathy Kendall. I’ve got some suggestions you might take away.

1. Your faith should be at the center of all that you do. If Jesus is real, then He ought to guide every decision and every action. Kathy had written out these words from Philippians chapter 2, which I think serve as a guide for us all,

Don’t be selfish, be humble, thinking of others as better than yourselves. Don’t just look out for your own interests, take an interest in others too. We must have the same attitude Jesus had. Though he was God…He took the humble position as a slave…He humbled Himself in obedience to God.

If we have trusted Christ, it should make us humble, soft, and loving. We should treat others with the same love and care with which He has treated us.

2. If the message of the Bible is true, we should do whatever we can to ensure that the people around us know Jesus and follow Him with their lives. There is too much at stake to let anything else get in the way.

3. Caring for others doesn’t have to be flashy. It can be as simple as listening intently rather than making a conversation about yourself or picking up a gift you know would make someone feel loved, or even ordering chicken strips because you want your friends to enjoy lobster in the big city. Simple things can make a huge impact.

4. We should devote most of our time and energy to things that will last, even after we’re gone. The stuff we’ve accumulated and the titles we’ve earned will be forgotten soon after we’re gone. But the impact you make on another person will last far into the future.

5. We should not be afraid to do the hard things, because the most important tasks often require hard work. Be willing to work hard, to have difficult conversations, to forgive others, and to serve diligently, knowing that your hard work will pay off in the end.

6. Simple things done for the Lord have extraordinary results. You can make a profound impact on others, even if it never feels like you’re doing anything extraordinary.

7. If you have faith in Christ, you don’t need to worry your way through life. Rather, you can trust that He is in control. You can face anything—even death—with confidence.

Kathy Kendall’s death leaves a gaping hole for many of us. We will miss her dearly. But we also know she is at rest, she is home, she is whole in the way she has always longed to be. Today, we grieve for our loss, because she has lost nothing. Kathy’s life was a consistent picture of her love for the Lord. Her legacy is the same. My hope is that each of us will endeavor to leave behind a similar legacy when our time comes as well.

Will you pray with me?

Our Heavenly Father, we are so grateful for the life of Kathy Kendall. We thank you for her example, and the impact she made on each person here and so many others. May we learn from her example, Lord, as we carry on in our lives. We thank you for the hope we find in the gospel. We thank you for making a way for us to be saved and forgiven, even though we don’t deserve it. As we move forward in life without Kathy, we ask for your comfort, your strength, and your grace. Help us as we grieve. We pray in Jesus’ name. Amen.