Althea Kearney

VISITATION:

12:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 30, 2015 , at Central Lutheran Church, 28 E. Columbia Street, Chippewa Falls

SERVICE:

1:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 30, 2015 , at Central Lutheran Church, 28 E. Columbia Street, Chippewa Falls

Althea Joan Kearney, age 80, formerly of Chippewa Falls, died peacefully at The Village of Incarnate Word, Senior Living in San Antonio, TX, on Friday, August 14, 2015.

Althea was born August 31, 1934, in Eau Claire, the daughter of Henry and Jeanette Christoffersen of Chippewa Falls. She graduated from Chippewa Falls High School in 1952, and then studied nursing initially at Radcliffe University in Boston and gained an interest in public health nursing at Massachusetts General Hospital. After an injury required leg surgery, she transferred to the University of Iowa to be closer to home and finished her Bachelor of Science in Nursing.

In her 45-year career as a public health nurse, Althea served needy populations in downtown Minneapolis and northern Chicago. She demonstrated her interest in early childhood development at Shriner's Hospital in Minneapolis, where she was particularly proud to have established a protocol for providing toys, rocking chairs, and a dedicated nurse for each infant.

While nursing in Iowa, Althea met Leland Kearney, born in Osceola, Iowa. Leland was a pianist, and the two shared a deep love for music and the arts. They married on February 25, 1961, at Central Lutheran Church of Chippewa Falls. The two raised their family in Wisconsin, eventually settling in the Eau Claire area, and Althea provided practical and emotional support for Leland's musical career. Althea taught at and developed the curriculum for the School of Nursing at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire, and then worked as a nursing instructor for nearly 30 years for the State of Wisconsin, first at the Mendota Mental Health Institute and then the Northern Center for Developmentally Disabled. She retired in 1998 to help take care of her first grandson, Alan (age 2-1/2 at the time).

After Althea retired, she and Leland spent winters in Nags Head, North Carolina, where "Miss Althea" was recognized for her volunteer work at Head Start of Dare County. The two continued to spend summers in the Christoffersen family home on Lake Wissota.

After Leland died in 2006, Althea fulfilled a long-held ambition to move back to Minneapolis to enjoy the arts and culture. She lived just blocks from the Guthrie Theatre and enjoyed many concerts, plays, and operas and made many new friends. She remained there until 2012, when she moved to San Antonio, Texas, to reside closer to daughter Margaret to help with her Alzheimer's care. In her final few years, she made new friends and passed wisdom on to the current generation of nurses. She told one of the nurses "You never know what is in your future."

Survivors include, one son, James (Andrea) Kearney, Falls Church, Virginia; two daughters, Margaret (Scott) Dittloff, San Antonio, Texas, and Elizabeth (Greg Schick) Kearney, San Mateo, California; sister-in-law, Sandee Kosmo (Christoffersen); four grandchildren, Alan and William Dittloff and Katherine and Jonathan Kearney; nieces, nephews, siblings-in-law, and many friends. She was preceded in death by husband, Leland Kearney and brother, James Christoffersen.

A Celebration of Life service will be held at 1:00 p.m. on Sunday, August 30, 2015 , at Central Lutheran Church, 28 E. Columbia Street, Chippewa Falls WI, with a visitation one hour prior to the service at church. Pastor Aaron Sturgis will be officiating.

In lieu of flowers, the family prefers memorial contributions in Althea's honor to the Epilepsy Foundation Heart of Wisconsin or a musical performance group or Alzheimer's research organization of choice.