Kathleen was born August 8, 1933 in Philadelphia PA, daughter of Theodore and Catherine Wolcheck.

She married John Burkhardt on September 6, 1952 and soon made their home in the suburbs of Washington D.C. where they began their family, ultimately having three daughters and five sons.  Because of John’s employment with the Department of Defense, the family also lived in California, Okinawa, and Taiwan during the nineteen sixties and seventies. Upon their return to the U.S. in the early seventies they made their home in Laurel, Maryland. There, they became active in the organization known as Worldwide Marriage Encounter which guides married couples in excelling in their relationship. Upon John’s retirement, they moved to North Carolina. Several years later they began working at the Catholic Center for the Diocese of Raleigh as the Coordinators for the Office of Family Life. Together Kathleen and John developed and presented pre-canna programs for engaged couples preparing them for marriage and introducing them to Natural Family Planning. Kathleen and John were certified instructors of Natural Family Planning and in the teaching of Fertility Awareness to teens.

Kathleen was a very spiritual person and was devoted to the growth of her family’s spiritual development. Kathleen and John shared many hobbies such as gourmet cooking, country woodcrafts, and traveling. 

Kathleen is survived by eight children, Mary, Donna Ashley and her husband, Ray, John and his wife, Donna, Ted and his wife, Suzanne, Thomas and his wife, Amy, Stephen and his wife, Lisa, Paul, Kathleen Pittman and her husband, Randy; 31 grandchildren and 60 great grandchildren; brother, Theodore Wolcheck and his wife, Linda, sisters: Margaret Drury and Patricia Farrar. Kathleen was pre-deceased by her parents, her husband John, her brother William Wolcheck, her grandsons Everett Lee Hicks, Matthew David Hicks, Adam Joseph Pittman, and Jacob Paul Burkhardt.

Above all things, Kathleen was a faithful believer in Our Lord Jesus Christ who was committed to sharing with those she met her deep faith and her sincere love of the Catholic Church. Kathleen was deeply committed to prayer and reading scripture. She loved reading spiritual books and has an extensive library of Catholic books on faith and theology to which she continued to add even in the last week of her life.  She lived her faith to the full and especially loved praying the Rosary. Kathleen was a long-time member of St. Joseph Catholic Church in Raleigh.

Kathleen was dearly loved by her family. She will be truly missed but memories of her will always be celebrated. Memorial contributions in lieu of flowers can be made to St. Joseph Catholic Church in support of their outreach to those in need.

A wake service will be held from 5:00 to 8:00 PM, on Friday May 12th at St. Joseph Catholic Church , 2817 Poole Rd. Raleigh NC 27610.

A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 11:00 am on Saturday May 13th at St. Joseph Catholic Church, 2817 Poole Rd, Raleigh NC 27610.  Interment to follow at Raleigh Memorial Park.

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