Kathleen "Kathy" Margaret McKee

Kathleen "Kathy" Margaret McKee (née Schneider), 65, of Denver, PA, beloved and cherished wife, mother, grandmother, aunt, and sister, passed away peacefully in her sleep in the early morning of February 18, 2026.

Born in Philadelphia, PA, in the summer of 1960, Kathy was the daughter of the late William and Hazel Anna (née Kircher) Schneider. She grew up with her two sisters Linda Fulford of Cape May Court House, NJ, and Patricia Wallace of Millville, NJ. Kathy spent most of her life in New Jersey, Pennsylvania, and Delaware.

Kathy’s many accomplishments and successes in life started early. She received the honor of valedictorian in school, which recognized her as the top student in her class.

Kathy thereafter focused her career on caring for others as a skilled medical assistant and in other positions across the healthcare industry. Throughout her career, her colleagues and patients consistently emphasized Kathy’s compassionate nature, natural leadership qualities, and commitment to helping others, which unquestionably left a lasting impact on those in her life.

Kathy embodied a rare-to-find enthusiasm for life and an infectious joy. She always found a reason to smile and made it her mission to brighten up every room she entered. She could make a stranger in a store laugh with a quip or comment, and her sense of humor, laugh, and kindness always shined through. One of her favorite activities was to dance. You could even find her dancing through the aisles of any store.

Kathy always said that her greatest and most treasured accomplishments in her life were her children and grandchild. Her fierce love for her family was unwavering and immeasurable. Even as her health declined later in life, she always beamed with pride when discussing her family. Kathy was a survivor who never gave up and spent her life devoted to her family. Both of her children will never forget what she sacrificed and endured to help enable them to have a better life, safety, security, compassion, and love. They will never forget her sense of humor, laugh, and kindness. Jamie and David can never thank their mother enough for her unconditional love, wisdom, and guidance. Kathy also had a pivotal and irreplaceable special relationship with her beloved grandson, Landon. Her “NaNa” love and guidance have helped Landon grow into a smart, kind, and loving young gentleman. Landon’s gratitude for his NaNa is everlasting. Words could never fully describe the endless love and support Kathy spread to everyone around her.

If you ask anyone who knew Kathy, there was no doubt she preferred staying active and adventurous. Her house always fit the season and showed off her memorabilia and knick-knacks. A beautiful reflection and insight into Kathy, her hobbies, and her passions. Kathy’s shining personality was ever-present in her design choices and her stylish attire. Kathy, however, really blossomed when active outside the home.

Kathy loved to travel and experience the beauties of the world first-hand. She regularly attended live theater, musicals, sporting events, concerts, and other shows and events throughout the country. Kathy deeply cherished attending these events with her husband, daughter, son, and others, and the accompanying memories will resonate in their hearts forever.

Her son, David, will always remember and cherish their yearly attendance at the home opener for the Philadelphia Phillies. Her daughter, Jamie, adored the times Kathy and she would attend Broadway and other theaters in New York City and Philadelphia. Overnight trips were even more special, as Jamie and Kathy bonded deeply on these co-op adventures.

Kathy also was an avid fan of all competitive levels of marching band, indoor color guard, and indoor percussion. She was extremely active with her children’s extracurricular activities throughout their entire lives. She never missed a single game or event that included her children. In recent years, she made it a priority to attend as many of her grandson Landon’s soccer games as possible, cheering him on through rain and shine. Her never-ending support will be cherished forever.

Few people in the world can claim to be a more devoted and enthusiastic fan of the Philadelphia Phillies baseball organization than Kathy. Kathy would regularly attend Opening Day games with her son, Mother’s Day games with her family, and other games with her daughter and grandson. None of us will ever forget the adorable interactions between baby Landon and the Phillie Phanatic at Landon’s first Phillies game. Although she could not attend as many games as she would have liked (all of them), she rarely missed watching a game on television or, at the very least, checking in on the game recap first thing in the morning (for those late-night games).

Jamie’s time attending Penn State University turned Kathy into a life-long Nittany Lions football fan. Even though Kathy rarely watched regular television, she loved watching college football games together with her husband Steve and the rest of her family.

Kathy had an insatiable love for the beach and ocean. There were few, if any, summers throughout Kathy’s life when she did not spend a considerable amount of time with her toes in the sand or splashing around in the break. One of the most significant milestones in her life occurred when Kathy and the love-of-her-life, her husband Steve, achieved their life-long dream of owning a house near the beach in her favorite town of Bethany Beach, DE. This is also the location where Steve proposed to Kathy, which led to many happy and fulfilling years with her family and friends there.

Her love for the sea and water developed into a love affair with cruises. Kathy and Steve would take cruises every winter. Kathy’s passion for cruises was so great she would not even cancel her scheduled cruise during the start of the Covid-19 pandemic.

Another passion Kathy embodied was her immense love and admiration for animals. She was a loving pet-mom to several animals throughout her life, including (i) Zack, a gentle German Shepard, (ii) Zeus, the god of thunder reincarnated in a tiny dog, (iii) Edgar, a hamster born to race the Daytona 500, (iv) several fish and birds, and, last but not least (v) the most recent addition, Curtis, a Cavalier King Charles Spaniel, who she loved with every ounce of her being. Curtis was a blessing who glued himself to Kathy’s side, loved her deeply, and was an irreplaceable beacon of light to aid her through the more difficult days towards the end of her life. Kathy also had a deep affection for elephants and contributed regularly to various wildlife conservation efforts aimed at ensuring the future of various elephant species across the world. She also could never resist an adorable sloth or flamingo.

Kathy is survived by her devoted husband, Stephen McKee; her loving daughter, Jamie-Lynne Spohn (Steven) of Royersford, PA; her loving son, David Benjamin DiDonato of Wilmington, DE; her adoring grandson, Landon Spohn of Royersford, PA; and her sisters, Linda Fulford (Joe) of Cape May Court House, NJ, and Patricia Wallace (Keith) of Millville, NJ. As well as many nieces, nephews, great-nieces, and great-nephews.

Kathy lived a full and meaningful life surrounded by people she loved and who loved her. Her family and friends will dearly miss her, and she will live on in their memories and hearts forever. She was a one-of-a-kind woman who made the world and the lives of those around her better and more joyous in ways words cannot properly or fully express. Kathy was a fun, loving, caring, and sweet woman who will be missed dearly by all who knew her. Her family will always love her to the moon and back.

Services will be held privately.

The family respectfully asks that, in lieu of sending flowers, a donation can be made in Kathy McKee’s name to either of the following charity organizations: American Cancer Society or Penn State THON, a student-run philanthropy at Penn State University committed to helping conquer childhood cancer.