Kathleen Ralston Guthrie

Please click here to view the Zoom Stream of the Memorial Service for Ms. Kathleen Guthrie. Streaming will begin on Saturday, July 26, 2025 at 2:30pm. The Meeting ID is 822 7248 4487 and the Passcode is 525052.

Kathleen Ralston Guthrie (Kathy) passed away peacefully on Friday, June 13, 2025. Kathy lived a dynamic, generous, and fulfilling life that began as part of a beautiful family, with parents Mack and Marge Ralston, and siblings Tim and Jan.

Kathy was born on March 26, 1943, in Terre Haute, Indiana. Her life followed an interesting “American Dream” trajectory. When her father, Mack, supported by the GI bill, completed his EDD at Indiana University, he became a Professor of Education at Arizona State University. He packed up the family in 1956 and headed west to the welcoming Arizona desert, a bold move from his Indiana roots.

Music was always a part of the Ralston household, and so Kathy began playing the oboe at age 9, continuing with high school and community orchestras later in life. Her favorites ranged from Gilbert & Sullivan to Pete Seeger, and she loved to sing from Broadway musicals for friends at the Collington retirement community, accompanied by her husband.

Kathy embraced Arizona but aspired to return to the eastern US for higher education. She earned a BA degree from Indiana University and eventually settled in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, with husband Joe Guthrie, building a family with four children, Amy, Doug, Tim, and Christy. Kathy was a committed, passionate, and powerful mother. Her strong dedication and action around issues of peace and social justice left a deep impression on her children, family, friends, and community members.

As her children grew, Kathy, embracing her Quaker heritage, expanded her work in the peace community through the Pittsburgh Friends Meeting and the Pittsburgh Peace Institute. It was during this time that she met her second husband and life partner, Tim Barner, a peace activist with the World Federalist Association, where they were both active with the PA Nuclear Freeze Campaign.

Kathy and Tim moved to Washington, DC, in 1992, where she became the grass roots organizer at the Friends Committee on National Legislation (FCNL), a Quaker lobbying organization. After retiring from FCNL in 2009, she continued to volunteer with FCNL committees.

Also in 2009, she began a new volunteer role with the Library of Congress, becoming a docent and eventually a Coordinator of Docents, introducing thousands of visitors to the national treasures within.

Lifelong passions ranged from travel to baking, and she delighted not only in the adventures, but also the opportunities to share with those dear to her, whether in Italy, France, Wales, or her beloved Indiana. Likewise, during the holidays, her legendary baking allowed her to share cherished traditional delicacies with family and friends.

In 2023 Kathy and Tim moved from their Capitol Hill home of 30 years to the Collington Life Plan Community in nearby Prince George’s County, MD. Kathy applied her activist muscles to grass roots activism in the 2024 elections. Always ready to offer support, and also passionate about learning, she helped to organize a low-hearing support group, while also volunteering with the Library and Flower committees, and she fell in love with pottery.

Kathy pursued an amazing life journey, filled with passion for peace and justice, from the Cold War era to a time offering greater hope for peace. She will be remembered and admired for her activism, deep love of family and friends, and contributions to worthy causes. Her family, friends, and community will miss her passion and commitment, and will continue to be inspired by her zest for life.

She is survived by her husband Tim Barner, children, Amy (Ray), Doug, Matt (Shelley), Tim, Christy, Eric, as well as grandchildren, Ben, Lorne, Christian, Lea, Cierra, Paloma, Jules, Sabine, Melanie, Wesley and Jocelyn, and additionally, her siblings Jan and Tim (Julie), her aunt Nancy, and extended family of cousins, nieces, and nephews.

Details on a celebration of her life will be forthcoming at www.gaschs.com, to be held at Collington Life Plan Community on Saturday, July 26, 2025 at 2:30 PM.

Donations in her honor can be made to the American Cancer Society, the Friends Committee on National Legislation, or the Arc of the United States.