Catherine Burson

Catherine Joan Burson, age 65, passed away Sunday, September 8th at KU Medical Center in Kansas City, Kansas. Cathy entered the world on April 18th, 1949 in Kansas City, Missouri, the eldest of nine children born to Bernard and Elizabeth (Lickteig) Gellhaus. Growing up on a dairy farm taught Cathy how to work outside with cattle and machines, all the while learning the arts of cooking, sewing, and monitoring her siblings. Due to all of this knowledge in her formative years, Cathy developed a no nonsense work ethic. As a graduate of Ursuline Academy in Paola she made many lifetime friends. Cathy was united in marriage to her best friend, William Dale Burson, on August 28, 1971 in Greeley, Kansas. When her three children were young she baked and sold birthday and wedding cakes to help support her family. Most of her professional life was spent in the trucking industry which started at Ross Truck Lines, followed by 32 years at Yellow Freight/YRC. In her free time, Cathy loved to fish, spending hours on a pond bank wetting her line. She was an avid gardener who instilled a love of plants and flowers within her children. She cherished the time spent with her grandchildren, enjoying reading, fishing, and baking with them and watching their programs and sporting events. Many friends and family loved Cathy's famous holiday frosted sugar cookies. She passed the tradition of making the cookies to her children and grandchildren. Cathy enjoyed traveling and exploring new places. Many family vacations were spent in Colorado which was one of her favorite places. She was a lifelong member of the Catholic faith and shared that faith with all who knew her. Next to her strong faith, family and friends were the most important to Cathy. She will be remembered as a quiet, kind, hard-working, creative, caring, smart, and loving woman. We will miss her dearly. She is preceded in death by her grandparents, parents, and brother Clem Gellhaus. Cathy is survived by husband Bill Burson of Paola; mother-in-law Evelyn Burson of Paola; children: Stacy and Eric Rasmussen of Kansas City, Kansas, Mike and Staci (Matthews) Burson of Lenexa, Kansas, and Barry and Taylor (Kultala) Burson of Shawnee, Kansas; grandchildren Lane, Claire, Emma (Barry), and Eliza Burson (Mike); siblings Peggy Gellhaus, Lester and Vicki Gellhaus, Janie and Chuck Adams, Susan and Steve Jones, Marty and Carol Gellhaus, Cindy and Garren Hardy, and Bart Gellhaus. She had 12 nieces and nephews and 14 great nieces and great nephews. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial contributions be made to KU Endowment, 3901 Rainbow Boulevard, Mail Stop 3012, Kansas City, KS 66160, to benefit liver research or pulmonary patient care. Online contributions may be made at www.kuendowment.org/give. Please indicate that donations are for the Catherine Burson memorial; or to Holy Cross Cemetery Endowment, 400 S. East Street, Paola, KS 66071. To share a memory of Cathy or to leave a condolence message for her family, please click the "Share Memories" tab. Holy Trinity Catholic Church 501 E. Chippewa St. Service: Saturday, September 13, 2014 at 10:00 AM Visitation: Friday, September 12, 2014 from 6:30 PM to 8:00 PM