Kent Kaase

Kent Kaase was born on December 11, 1967 in Perrysburg, Ohio, the son of Patricia Pietras and the late George Kaase, and he passed away peacefully on Monday, December 15, 2014 in Houston at the age of 47 after a hard-fought and courageous battle with cancer.

He attended Maumee Valley Country Day School and he graduated with a degree in Business from The University of Houston.

To those who knew him, at 6’8”, Kent was both unforgettable and larger than life at times, with a broad smile and hearty laugh. He was an incredibly loyal, dependable and faithful friend to many and a devoted husband and father. Kent had many interests including music at the House of Blues, hosting football parties at the Tasting Room, paintball, cars and sailing, but his two primary joys in life were in helping companies solve complex problems through a long career in consulting and in spending time with his family. He enjoyed the challenges, close collaboration and hectic travel with his many life-long colleagues across the companies where he worked, and his trusted phone, tablet and laptop were never far from his side. But, as can be seen on his countless family Facebook posts, his most special joy was spending time with his children. Whether it was attending their many swimming meets, basketball games, recitals, cub scout meetings and other events, or just wandering out to a fun lunch or movie somewhere, he was never happier. This past summer, he was fortunate to have spent a great 3-week driving vacation all over the northeast United States, generating countless fun memories with his kids.

In the end, he fought his battle with melanoma cancer ferociously using every tool available, including the newest ground-breaking immunotherapies, and he was fighting hard to his last day. But it was never a fair fight from the beginning. He was only diagnosed two months earlier, and at the time of his initial diagnosis, he was already at Stage IV.

The day before he died, his sister, Kim, and her family had flown in to see him and to join his brother, Keith, and his wife, Carmen, who had tirelessly helped him with his fight. He received them all with wonderful grace, dignity, strength and patience. Although his body was losing the battle, his mind was remarkably clear of cancer, something the doctors could not explain. They said it was one of his better days, and his family is convinced that he had waited for her to arrive before he departed. They are very glad and thankful that he was able to hug everyone and clearly say his goodbyes the way he wanted to.

He was 47 years old, with two great children, 11 and 9, and it is hard to understand why this had to happen to him in the prime of his life. But, his family is comforted in knowing that he is now in heaven with his Dad, who is sitting with his ever-present pipe and starting to explain it all.

His family and friends have many wonderful memories, and they will miss him dearly.

Kent is survived by his wife, Carmen Watrin, daughter Jacqueline, son Maximilian, his sister, Kimberly Kaase Bors and her husband, Paul Bors, with their children Richard, Robert and Kathryn, his brother Keith Kaase and his wife, Sheryl Rash, and his mother, Patricia Pietras, and her husband, George Jenkins.

His family would like to thank all the nurses and doctors at the The Houston Methodist Hospital for the care that he received. Dr Robert Parrish the Neurosurgeon on call the night we received the diagnosis was an angel whose surgical skill was matched with his caring and bedside manner during the stresses of emergency surgery and Dr Eric Bernicker for never giving up hope that we could get Kent better. The staff at Methodist Hospital went to extraordinary measures to ensure that Kent was able to get the latest immunotherapy working with the drug companies who are so often overlooked to bring us hope.

Carmen will never forget the kindness and support from all of the family and friends who reached and out and helped with simple things like buying milk for the house to taking Kent to treatments, picking up the children from swimming and feeding any or all of us. Her friends at Texas Children’s Hospital, especially, were unwavering in their support and it will never be forgotten.

Friends are cordially invited to a visitation with the family from 11:30 am to 1:00 pm, a memorial service at 1:00 pm, and a reception to follow, all at Geo. H. Lewis & Sons Funeral Home, 1010 Bering Drive, Houston, TX 77057.

In lieu of customary flowers and remembrances, the family requests with gratitude that memorial contributions in memory of Kent Kaase be directed to Texas Children’s Hospital at

http://waystogive.texaschildrens.org/kentkaase