Kathryn Brown Embree, 67,
of Axtell, Texas, who never met a craft project, a garden, or an animal she did
not like, died on November 11, 2017.
Kat was born in 1950, the
only child of Pat and Bess Petterson.
Despite being their only child, she had six brothers and sisters (and
was already an aunt) the minute she was born.
After graduating from Mart
High School in 1969, Kat attended Navarro Junior College and then returned to
Waco to obtain a degree from Durham Business College. She worked at the Naval Reserve Center in
Waco for several years.
Along the way, she met and
married Tommy Brown. While their
marriage did not last, Kat's best souvenirs from that marriage were her
children, Damon Kyle and Keri DeAnn.
Kat eventually moved to
Axtell, and while working at Buffalo Airways in Waco, she met (and married) her
boss, Greg Embree, instantly gaining three additional children Mary, Anna,
and Dean. Kat and Greg's first date was
at the Heart O' Texas Speedway, hauling all five kids along. (What fun that must have been!) They lived in Axtell until 2012, when they
moved to Houston so Kat could play nanny to a new granddaughter.
Kat was a crafter
extraordinaire who could be counted on for her patience and attention to detail
on projects large and small. Later in
her life, she became a skilled quilter, and family members could easily predict
what kind of gift she would make for those who were welcoming new babies. She also was a talented baker who began
baking Christmas cookies (sometimes 100 dozen) each year on the day after
Halloween, "just so I'm ready." No
cookie request was too large, and no detail was too small.
Kat also loved animals, and
encouraged the family to have a menagerie that included, over the years, dogs,
cats, birds, fish, and rabbits. Her
house in Axtell was known to be a place where any animal could find shelter and
a safe home (either there or with a friend).
Greg honored his vow to
stick by Kat in sickness and in health for 27 years. He, along with her children and other family
members, was by her side through the ups and downs of her three-year battle
with lung cancer.
Kat is survived by her
husband, Greg; her children, Damon Brown and his wife Dina of Austin, Texas,
and Keri Brown Womack and her husband, Ben, of Houston, Texas; and her
grandchildren (who called her MaMaKat), Cash, Dylan, Julia, and Will. She also is survived by Greg's three
children, Mary, Anna, and Dean (and his wife Hannah), and grandchildren, Dylan,
Kaleb, William, Kassidy, and Owen; a brother, Dan Walling; a sister-in-law,
Barbara Walling; a brother-in-law, John Moore; and many nieces and nephews,
great-nieces and great‑nephews, cousins, and friends.
Kat was preceded in death
by her parents, Pat and Bess Petterson; her siblings, Jack Walling, Zelda
Vicha, Louise Moore, Ralph Petterson, and Frances Donald; her siblings-in-law,
Robert Vicha, Bob Donald, and Mary Walling; her nephew, Bobby Vicha; and her
niece, Brenda Pittman.
A celebration of Kat's life
will be held on Tuesday, November 28, 2017 at 11 a.m. at the Bellmead Funeral
Home, 809 LaClede Street, in Waco. Following the celebration, her ashes will be
interred at the Axtell Cemetery, next to her parents. Kat requested that the
attendees of these ceremonies wear "their favorite color, or any color other
than black."
In lieu of flowers, Kat
requested that donations be made to your local animal shelter or charity of
your choice.
Please sign the online guest book at www.bellmeadfuneralhome.com