Kathleen Ann Partain

Kathy went to where the light touches the Earth on the nineteenth of February. It was three hours before the night ticked to morning, in the thick of a snowstorm. It time for her to become someone new.

Born in Rochester, New York to Larry and Blanche Guilford, she joined big brother Ronnie on December 2, 1947. Though New iYork was where every member of the family was born, California was home. Upon the move to San Diego, Kathy was opened to the colorful world of the hippie movement. Seeing as h’s and y’s were “too heavy, man”, Kathy became Kat and started the revolution into bohemia. Even while winning the title of Miss Elks, a teenage beauty pageant, she managed to say no to heels and head straight for the hirachis. She was a dancer, a model, and a proud Native American. She knew a little about every tribe and was fond of telling anyone who would listen some of her native wisdom - mostly snippets of things she heard on NPR.

Kathy made the move to Sandpoint in 1989 with her three youngest kids. Here she found a community of like-minded people willing to smile and laugh with her, two of her favorite activities. Several of her other children followed her, later on, as they too wanted to see the “colors of the wind” Sandpoint is painted with, as Kathy would say. She considered Disney’s Pocahontas a masterpiece.

She was a talented artist, acquiring the natural skill from her father, and passing it on to many of her family members. Art was spiritual to her. She drew on her Native American heritage constantly, painting many portraits of Native Americans, including a prized piece of Chief Joseph. She also painted pictures of her favorite people, including her family members and ET. Kathy joins her parents, her brother, and a son, Nicky, in whatever it is she thought would come next. She could be a butterfly now, or a lizard, and if the world wasn’t feeling creative, another person. She’d be happy with all those options, but would probably be gassed to be a rock, if she was being honest. She is survived by her very own tribe - six kids, Nick, Michelle, Cindy (Flapper), Shawna (Harry), Taffy (Josh), and Tiffany. Seeing as it’s sad to go to a pow-wow with only a few dancers, she also has too many grandchildren, great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews to count. She is also survived by her dear friends Howard and Georgia Simmons, who she loved and appreciated dearly.  She loved every soul she met.

You can still see her in the clouds and in the flowers, in perfect brushstrokes, and in leaves twirling in the wind.

In lieu of flowers, you can remember her by smoking a cigarette, burning a bra, and staring at a picture of your chosen tribal leader.