Mary Gatens-Mckenna

Mary Jo "Jody" Gatens-McKenna, age 83 of Fort Collins, Colorado died March18, 2012 at a local Columbine Rehab facility, a company she had worked at for many years. Visitation is planned from 5:00 until 7:00 PM Friday, March 23rd at Goes Funeral Care, 3665 Canal Drive, Suite E, Fort Collins. Recitation of the Rosary will begin at 7:00 PM Friday. Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated at 9:30 AM Saturday at St. Joseph Catholic Parish in Ft. Collins. Interment will be in Walnut Hill Cemetery, Kingman, Kansas followed by Recitation of the Rosary at 10:45 and a Memorial Mass at 11:00 am at St. Patrick's Catholic Church also in Kingman. A luncheon will follow the mass on Monday. Mary Jo Gatens was born in Iowa City, Iowa on December 2, 1928 to James and Winifred Gatens. She grew up in Carroll, Iowa and graduated from Loretto Heights College in Denver with a BS in Nursing. She married Maurice McKenna in 1953 in Carroll and they live for a short while in Denver prior to settling in Fort Collins in 1956. They began a truck line; called McKenna-Beardsley Trucking, one of the first refrigerated trucks in Colorado. When Maurice died in 1959, she tried to run the company with an infant in toe. That wasn't working out so she returned to nursing and became the Director of OB nursing at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins. Jody, as most knew her, also worked in nursing at a few private medical offices; and after taking time off to take care of and raise her children; began working at Columbine East Nursing Home where she eventually became the Director of Nursing. She retired three years ago as a pharmacy tech at Centre Pharmacy. Jody was a longtime and active member of St. Joseph Parish and was also among the founding members of St. Elizabeth Ann Seton Parish. She loved music and was quite talented as she participated in the Choir at SEAS for several years. She loved to play Bridge; attend musicals; travel; and she especially enjoyed being around her grandchildren. She is survived by four children, Patricia (and Dennis) Hotovec of Thornton, CO, James (and Shawna) McKenna of Ft. Collins, Maureen (and Geoffrey) Johns of Carbondale and Jeff Geilenkirchen of Ft. Collins; two step-sons, Loren (and Nancy) Geilen of Castle Rock, CO and Evan (and Jane) Geilenkirchen of North Platte, NE; eight grandchildren; and six great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by an infant son, Maurice E. McKenna; her husband, Maurice McKenna; her sister, Jane Prenger; and a step son, Phillip Geilenkirchen Donations may be sent to Sisters of St. Joseph, P.O. Box 279, Concordia, KS 66901.