04/02/2026
Friends and family,
we are here today to celebrate
an 83 year old woman who did not want to sit still and let the world go by.
Given the opportunity she gave her all to try new things.
She could be a force of nature
who lived her 80’s like she had forgotten she already lived through EIGHT decades.
My mother Kathleen
spent the days in her 80's not only dreaming of cruising and white water rafting, she did them!
She took a hot air balloon ride, rode a motorcycle,
rode a mountain roller coaster,
visited Disney again,
rode in a helicopter,
played bubble soccer,
walked through NYC
and rode a subway,
went zip lining,
saw the Rockettes,
rode a bicycle,
went snow tubing,
shook hands with the first lady,
and tried indoor sky diving!
The current song
by Cody Johnson
makes me think
of how brave she had to be
to try all these things
so late in life….
*Even knowin' now -
what I didn't know back then
I'd climb back on
because
The ride is worth the fall
The fall was worth the smiles
The smiles were worth the tears
The tears were worth the miles
The miles were worth the pain
and the pain………
was worth it all.
If you knew Mom, you knew her energy.
She was a devout Catholic,
a dedicated wife,
a woman who was still tending
to her gardens herself
to the amazement
of her neighbours.
She devoured books.
She was still driving.
She grew amazing orchids
She loved Lancaster Pa
and Pigeon Forge TN
and spent her days
watching old tv shows.
She loved holidays……..
especially Christmas.
She loved Frankenmuth MI.
She loved Walt Disney.
She didn't just walk through her 70’s and 80’s
she marched, she ran, and she danced through it.
She was brave,
She was stubborn
**even when she realized
she was wrong…
She was very independent,
She was a fighter,
She was creative,
She was a collector,
AND she was passionate.
She taught us that if you’re going to do something, you do it with love and you do it right
or why bother doing it at all?
Her spirit was not just about trying new things because she could be just as passionate
playing scrabble or Yahtzee
but would lose at Monopoly
on purpose
every time.
She could be incredibly generous
but was very good at saving for a rainy day.
She taught us to be strong,
to be the kind of person
people wanted to be around,
and to keep moving forward.
She wanted us to believe.
To believe in God
To believe in ourselves
and to believe our lives were a gift.
I know she would want us to channel HER energy into living our own lives to the fullest,
to care for one another,
to face challenges
with the same courage
she used to keep going.
Mom, thank you.
Thank you for your unwavering presence this last 8 years.
You were a part of so many events and holidays and trips
and memories.
We were amazed by your will power, and your energy,
your french onion soup,
your capacity to put up with me
and your love for life.
We loved you and will miss you.
While we mourn losing her presence here, please do not cry.
I want you to know that she could NOThave chosen a more peaceful way to go.
While I was holding her waiting for the ambulance she literally fell into my arms and took her last breath.
It was very quick and it involved NO long hospital stay and NO drawn out medical procedures.
She left to go to the home
she was promised her whole life.
She is with her whole family now
and watching over us with them.
Thank you to everyone
who was a part of her life,
because she is now at peace.
But she would want
all of you to hear this…
so listen carefully…
"get off your butts and go live your life, we did not travel all this way to just lay in a bed”
I choose to think the snow today
is Mom celebrating a late/early Christmas with everyone here.
It was her favourite holiday.
As a last gift to all of us,
there is a bin of ornaments right off her perpetual tree.
Please make sure to take one as you leave. Then you will always have a little bit of her with you every Christmas.
Haylee is there to help.
Thank you
and God bless all of you
for the gifts this past week
and the food donations today.
https://www.obituary-assistant.com/fhws/templates/standalone-new/print.cfm?obit_id=529535&filename=kathleen-cecilia-van-vliet-obituary.pdf
van Vliet - Kathleen Cecilia (nee Ramsten) of Lynhurst in St. Thomas, passed away in the arms of her oldest daughter, Deborah Lynn Shannon, early Tuesday March 31st 2026 at the age of 83. Beloved wife of the late John van Vliet (2020).
