Mary Kathryn Ratcliff

Mary Kathryn Ratcliff, 81, of Fulton died Sunday, April 30, 2000, at the University of Iowa Hospitals in Iowa City.

A memorial service was held Thursday, May 4, at the Fulton Presbyterian Church with the Rev. Dennis Carr officiating. There was no visitation. A memorial fund has been established.

Mrs. Ratcliff was born Aug. 17, 1918, in Olds, the daughter of Arch and Marie Reed Huston. She married Maurice Floyd Ratcliff in 1942 in Lancaster, Mo. After graduating from Olds High School, she attended Iowa Wesleyan College and the University of Iowa, where she received a degree in music. She was a music teacher in Iowa and Garden Plain, Albany and Fulton schools for 27 years, retiring in 1982. A pianist, she performed at Clinton Moose Lodge, Thomson/York Rotary Club, White Shrine, Harbor Crest Nursing Home in Fulton and for many other groups in the area. Her pastimes included playing Bingo, playing the piano for organizations she was involved with and spending time with her friends and family. She was a member of the Fulton Presbyterian Church and an elder of the church, Women of the Moose in Clinton, Eastern Star past worthy matron and a 50-year member of the Merton Chapter in Fulton, the White Shrine, Magi Chapter, Rebecca Lodge of Lyons, Alpha XI Delta, Alpha PSI Omega and she was a former member of P.E.O. Sisterhood and the Pythian Sisters.

Survivors include two daughters, Donna Cullinan of Lanark and Kathy Cullinan of Fulton; two sons, Dale Ratcliff of Albany and David Ratcliff of Florida; eight grandchildren; and two great-grandchildren. She was preceded in death by a daughter, Mary Maureen Ratcliff; one son, James Ratcliff; and one sister.