Remembered for a Life of Love, Service and Kindness
November 27, 1948 – July 18, 2025
Kathryn “Kathy” Kothman Weedon passed away peacefully on July 18, 2025, after a long illness, surrounded by her loving family.
Born in Portsmouth, Ohio, Kathy moved to Jacksonville at age 7. It was there she met Jerry Weedon, her lifelong best friend and, eventually, her husband of 51 years. Their love story began in third grade at Assumption Catholic School and blossomed over nearly two decades of friendship before they married in 1974.
A dedicated student, Kathy graduated summa cum laude from Bishop Kenny High School in Jacksonville and Spring Hill College in Mobile, Alabama. As a Fulbright Scholar, she studied for a year at Loyola University in Rome, Italy, where she developed an enduring love for Italian culture. After graduation, she worked for Pan American World Airways, using her Italian and French to travel the world.
Kathy and Jerry settled in Gainesville while Jerry attended law school. Soon after, they joyfully welcomed three children, Lauren, Jamey, and John, in just over three years. Kathy completely embraced motherhood, serving as homeroom mom, picture mom, cheerleader, and steadfast supporter.
Once her children were in school, Kathy turned her energy to community service. She held leadership roles on the Board of Directors of the Junior League of Jacksonville, Community Connections of Jacksonville, The Women’s Board of Wolfson Children’s Hospital, Leadership Jacksonville, Assumption Council of Catholic Women, Diocesan Advisory Board of Education Catholic Diocese of St. Augustine and Bishop Kenny High School. She was an active volunteer in many other nonprofit organizations including Catholic Charities, St. Vincent’s Hospital Foundation, American Cancer Society, Ronald McDonald House, MOSH and Children’s International Summer Village (CISV). She once served as chairman and hostess to a then-little-known guest speaker at the Wolfson Antique Show: Martha Stewart. Under Kathy’s leadership as the 1990-1991 president of the Junior League of Jacksonville, she welcomed the organization’s first African American woman to serve on its board of directors.
Later, she launched a new professional chapter, first managing corporate sales for the Bausch & Lomb Women’s Tennis Tournament, then joining Jacksonville Magazine, where she spent more than 30 years as its associate editor, community relations director, social columnist and proofreader.
In 2005, Kathy was invested as a Dame of the Sovereign Military Order of Malta. She made multiple pilgrimages to Lourdes, France, accompanying the sick to the sacred grotto. She was a daily communicant at Assumption Catholic Church and volunteered on Saturdays at the St. Francis Soup Kitchen.
A gifted tennis player and proud supporter of the Gators and Jaguars, Kathy was known for her energy, wit and most of all, her kindness. Her family describes her simply as “spectacular,” a word they feel still falls short.
She is survived by her husband Jerry; children Lauren, Jamey (Katie), and John (Brooke); nine beloved grandchildren: Ben, Luke, Paul, Allie, Will, Megan, Jake, Beau and Liza Dailey; sister Anne (Carl) Albanese; sisters-in-law Marla Weedon and Kathy Weedon; nieces, nephews, and many dear friends.
The family extends heartfelt thanks to Kathy’s caregivers, Luz Marina Ocampo and Arline Diaz, and to the team at Community Hospice.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Weedon Family Scholarship Fund at Bishop Kenny High School.
