Kathryn Winifred McBride

Kathryn Winifred Weaver McBride died peacefully in her sleep on February 14, 2022, in Tampa, FL, at 96 years of age. She was the beloved Diva of her clan, elegant and fun, always fashionably dressed, fiercely loyal and proud of her family. She was the devoted wife of Robert Wegley (Mac) McBride for 61 years, until his death in 2011. Wynne is survived by four children, ten grandchildren, two great grandchildren, and their spouses.

Wynnie Weaver was born on April 15, 1925 in Lancaster, PA, to Houston Emerson Weaver and Kathryn Horn Weaver. Her Harvard-educated father moved the family to White Plains, NY for a job, where they lived in a one bedroom apartment. Despite the hardships of the depression, Wynnie and her sister Connie had a secure childhood, returning to Lancaster for summer vacations. Her resourceful, stylish mother raised the girls to skillfully make do and her parents welcomed a succession of Wynnie’s boyfriends.

Wynnie’s outgoing nature emerged early. She attended Bayside High School and pledged Kappa Alpha Theta sorority at Adelphi College. Graduation from the nursing program coincided with the most significant loss of Wynnie’s life, the death of her mother in 1946 from cancer. Wynnie slept with her mother’s picture under the pillow until the day she married Mac McBride.

A boyfriend’s sister talked her into taking a nursing job in Los Alamos, NM. When she called to schedule her first airplane ride, they could not find the town on the map. Her first contact with the military was at top secret Sandia Airbase, NM. It was a good move for a pretty nurse destined to be a devoted Army wife.

At Los Alamos she met LT McBride, a national collegiate swimmer and a top ranked member of West Point Class of 1945. He took her camping, fishing, and skiing, and introduced her to his four talented sisters – Kay, Deb, Madge, and Susie. Mac and Wynne were married in Austin, Texas on February 25, 1950.

Wynne adapted to new roles throughout her life. The birthplaces of their children reflect the rhythm of a career officer: Katy and Susie at Ft. Belvoir, VA; Rob at Bergstrom AFB, TX; and Nancy in Ankara, Turkey. Wynne enjoyed being an Army wife and accompanying Mac to Ft. Leavenworth; Ft. Sill; Ft. Belvoir; Sidi Silimane, Morocco; Adana, Turkey; Ft. Leonard Wood; Carlisle Barracks; Redstone Arsenal; and Dallas, TX. She did not enjoy being a single parent when he served with combat troops in Korea, as an advisor to the Turkish army, and in Vietnam.

Wynne was ready to settle down after the Colonel retired in 1975. He started a second career in Knoxville, TN. Life was busy. They enjoyed building Wynne’s dream home on Weathervane Drive. They attended Concord United Methodist Church. Two daughters graduated from high school there, joining their siblings in attending Vanderbilt University. Wynne exercised her love of fashion, decorating, gardening, travel, West Point reunions, and visiting family. Always warm and hospitable, Wynne and Mac lived in Knoxville for 32 years, enjoying many friends, hosting Super Bowl parties, and perfecting their duplicate bridge game.

In 2007, Wynne and Mac moved to Tampa, FL to be near their daughter Nancy and her husband Carlos. Wynne stood by Mac through his last illness until his death in 2011. She then moved to be closer to Nancy. A social butterfly to the end, she made friends at bingo, crafts, movies, and happy hours.

Wynne enjoyed getting to know people and took an interest in what each person was doing. She had a sparkling sense of humor that could raise her grandchildren’s eyebrows. Like any Diva, she could also be exasperating and demanding. She was a party girl at heart, always eager to put on her makeup and join family and friends for a get together.

Wynne’s fierce loyalty and love of family only grew with time. One of her strongest legacies was hosting 40 years of family reunions at Hilton Head, SC, from 1979 to 2019. Together the family proudly celebrated their life events: girlfriends and boyfriends, marriages, children, moves, homes, careers, colleges, and traveling. She loved the beach, Mac’s Old Fashioned, and newspaper shrimp dinners. But first and always, she loved being with her family.

In addition to her four children, Wynne was an ever present mother-in-law to Carlos Dalence, Sterling Underhill, and Patty McBride, and a fond grandmother to Anna, Isabel, and Genevieve Dalence; Andrew, Emily, Grace, and Kathryn Underhill; and Julie McBride, Peter, and Beth Ikeda.

Services

A memorial service for Wynne will be held at 2:00 p.m., Saturday, February 19, 2022 at Allegro Hyde Park in Tampa. Funeral arrangements are through Blount & Curry Funeral Home, MacDill Chapel. She will be buried at Arlington National Cemetery with her husband. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Armed Forces Family Survivors Fund.