Kathryn OCallaghan Ackett

Kathryn OCallaghan Ackett, age 92, passed away peacefully at Lake Springs Assisted Living, Buford, Georgia on April 15, 2010. She was born Martha Kathryn Fitzpatrick on December 9, 1917, the eldest of five children of Wesley Harris Fitzpatrick and Ruth Cureton Fitzpatrick. She was preceded in death by her first husband of 35 years, William Lawrence OCallaghan, who died in 1975, and her second husband of 19 years, Howard W. Ackett, who died in 2003. She was graduated with honors from Austell High School and attended Agnes Scott College and Draughons School of Commerce in Atlanta. She began work with Retail Credit Corporation (now Equifax) and then with the Citizens & Southern Bank (now Bank of America). Later she became the secretary to the chief executive officers of National Institutional Food Distributors Association. In 1968 she became the secretary to the Director of Nursing of the new Cobb General Hospital and a year later she became the Director of Volunteers, a position she held until her retirement in 1984. All the while she raised four children and found time to serve as President of the Austell Womens Club, President of the Cobb County Girl Scout Council and as acting Executive Director for one year. She was awarded Girl Scouts highest honor, the Thanks Badge, and served on the Cobb County YWCA board. She served as President of the Women of the Church and as a Deaconess in the Austell Presbyterian Church. In 1973, she was named Woman of the Year by the Austell Womens Club and nominated for State of Georgia Mother of the Year. Her friends were often amazed at her ability to care for four children, keep a home running smoothly and still have time for civic and church work. Her home was a gathering place for family and friends. When her husband called to say that he was bringing friends home for dinner, she was always ready and greeted her guests with calmness as though she had all day to prepare for them. She is survived by her four children and their spouses, William Lawrence OCallaghan Jr. and his wife Faye Whitmire OCallaghan, Patricia OCallaghan Patterson and her husband James Meriwether Patterson, Robert Stuart OCallaghan and his wife Donna Ward OCallaghan, and Rebecca OCallaghan McFarland and her husband Robert Parker McFarland, all of whom live in the Atlanta area. Also surviving are 14 grandchildren, Diana OCallaghan Corday, Meri Elizabeth Patterson Miller, John Patrick OCallaghan, James OCallaghan Patterson, Robert Stuart OCallaghan Jr., Laura Patterson Schmerker, Kelly OCallaghan Angel, Robert Parker McFarland Jr., William Lee Patterson, Bryan Alexander McFarland, Michael Lawrence OCallaghan, Wesley Ward OCallaghan, Preston Stuart McFarland and Kara Elizabeth McFarland. She is also survived by 16 great-grandchildren, Callie Noelle Corday, Kinsey Leigh Corday, Joshua James Corday, Summer Elizabeth Miller, Katherine Surprise Miller, Abigail Meriwether Miller, Patrick Bryce OCallaghan, Connor Banks OCallaghan, Delaney Grace OCallaghan, Tobiah Colm OCallaghan, Nevan Stuart OCallaghan, Ada Brigid O'Callaghan, Isabel Katelyn Angel, Zachary Cash Angel, Kathryn Grace McFarland and Preston Bailey McFarland. She is also survived by a brother and two sisters, Wesley Harris Fitzpatrick Jr., Sara Fitzpatrick Burden and Ann Fitzpatrick Strickland. Another brother, Fred Cureton Fitzpatrick, died as an infant. Funeral services will be held at 10:00 AM Saturday, April 17, 2010 at Byars Funeral Home, 155 Professional Park Drive, Cumming, GA with The Reverend Derry Cochran officiating. There will also be a graveside service at Rose Hill Cemetery, Cemetary St., Austell, GA at 12:30 PM the same day, The Reverend Joseph W. Conyers Jr. officiating. The family will receive friends at Byars Funeral Home one hour prior to the service. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to The Billy Graham Crusade or Georgia Chapter of the Alzheimers Association.