Kate Killebrew

Kate Killebrew

February 8, 1940 – December 4, 2023

Kate was born and raised in Des Moines, Iowa. She had two older brothers, who predeceased her. She was a beloved wife to her husband of 50 years, John Karon, and a devoted mother to her two children. Kate had a long and successful career as a diagnostic radiologist, enjoyed spending time with her granddaughters, and loved her dogs and cats. She was active and engaged until contracting covid just before Thanksgiving; severe complications led to her death. We will remember Kate with a celebration of her life at the Daniels Funeral Home, 3113 Carlisle Blvd NE, Albuquerque, at 4:00 PM on April 20^th.

Kate was very devoted to and proud of her work as a radiologist. She entered Swarthmore College at age 16, where she majored in Fine Arts. After graduation, she went to Radcliffe College for a master’s degree in art history, followed by medical school at Columbia Physicians and Surgeons; she received her M.D. in 1967, one of only three women graduating that year. Kate did her internship in internal medicine at the University of Washington, followed by a residency in diagnostic radiology at UC San Francisco and a position at the San Francisco VA. After marriage to her husband John Karon, she had radiology positions at the Fort Carson Army Base hospital in Colorado Springs, at UNC Chapel-Hill as a faculty member, and in a large hospital in Atlanta. She was the first, or one of the first, woman radiologists in Atlanta. After retiring and moving to Albuquerque, she worked part-time for more than a decade at the Northern Navajo Medical Center in Shiprock, New Mexico, where she learned two words of Navajo (one of which was “cough”). She reluctantly ended her radiology career when the Navajo Medical Center was staffed by full-time radiologists. Kate actively kept up with new medical developments until her death.

After retirement, Kate devoted some of her energy to tracing her family’s genealogy history, which she was able to trace back about a thousand years. She found interesting likely ancestors, such as two Irish lady pirates. She enjoyed watching British mysteries (Agatha Christie et al.) and the Rumpole barrister and PG Woodhouse (Bertie Wooster) stories. She especially enjoyed buying clothing and books for her two granddaughters. Kate was devoted to her friends and didn’t hesitate to give them advice. She was an avid traveler, had a deep interest in current events, loved theater, and read the Sunday NY Times Arts section every week. Kate kept those close to her amused with her whip smart sense of humor. Finally, not only was Kate devoted to her own dogs and cats, but she also took care of a neighbor’s dog during the day. Those of us who knew her really miss her.

If you wish to make a contribution in Kate’s memory, we suggest Animal Humane New Mexico, Planned Parenthood, or an organization you think that Kate would have supported.