Kathleen Carole Strong

Kathy was born in Cincinnati, Ohio on June 13th, 1959 and moved to Maryland as a child. She grew up in Wheaton, attending St. Catherine Laboure School and Einstein High School before moving to Raleigh, North Carolina to pursue a degree in biochemistry and veterinary medicine. She graduated in 1985 with the inaugural class of the North Carolina State University College of Veterinary Medicine.

Guided by a professional purpose to heal and teach, Kathy returned to Maryland where she practiced small animal medicine for the next thirty years, most recently at Maple Springs Veterinary Hospital in Gaithersburg. She had a special interest in exotic animal medicine, including birds, reptiles, and "pocket pets," improvising procedures and equipment as needed to accommodate their unusual needs and physiologies. As impressive as her medical skills were, nothing took precedence over discerning, respecting, and fulfilling the needs of both her patients and their owners.

Ultimately, what gave Kathy the greatest joy and satisfaction was watching her daughter and two sons develop and mature into the remarkable young people they are today. There was not a moment spent in service of family which did not please Kathy mightily. She loved her children’s friends and claimed nieces, nephews, and son-in-law as her own. Her world was immeasurably warmed by the recent arrival of her beautiful granddaughter, Alice.

With her own children grown up and moved out into the world, Kathy discovered a new delight: overseeing the Gibson Island Junior Fleet sailing program for children down on the Chesapeake Bay. Seeing worried little tykes slow-walk their way to a first class on Monday, then rig, launch, and skipper their own little Opti prams off the beach by Friday never ceased to amaze and delight her. Kathy also developed a not-so-secret passion for ice hockey. She liked nothing better than to don her “Rockin’ Red” Brooks Laich jersey and shriek like a banshee for her favorite Washington Capitals hockey team.

Kathy is survived by her adoring husband Henry, sons John Henry and Kip, daughter Allana, son-in-law Evan, and granddaughter Alice, parents John and Gerry Loesch, sister Lisa Tharpe and brother Mike Loesch.

A memorial service will be held in the nave of the Washington National Cathedral on April 9th, 2016 at 5:00 PM, with reception immediately to follow. At 7:00 PM, those who wish to participate may join in a less formal sharing and remembrance of Kathy, to be held in the same location.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks that gifts be made in Kathy’s memory to: http://www.onsfoundation.org

The Oncology Nursing Society Foundation, the Montgomery County Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals - http://www.mcspca.org or the Sisters of Notre Dame, Covington, Kentucky Mission in Uganda - https://sndky.weshareonline.org/ws/opportunities/Uganda