KANSAS CITY – Catherine “Cathy” Rose Sweeney, 86, passed away peacefully on March 5, 2022 after a long illness with dementia. She was born on August 31, 1935 in Salina, Kansas to Margaret (Burghart) Bachofer and Daniel J. Bachofer, Sr. She resided in Salina until 2011, and then moved to the Kansas City area.

Catherine attended Sacred Heart Cathedral grade school and graduated from Sacred Heart High School in 1953. She was united in marriage to Robert Michael Sweeney on August 27, 1955, who passed away in 1967. As a single parent and widow, she raised two young children on her own.

Catherine was trained as a Draftsman by Southwestern Bell Telephone Company. She was the first employee of Schilling Institute which opened in 1965, working with Director Henry Neely Jr. Schilling Institute was the state’s only technical school offering two-year training programs in aviation, engineering and technology (later becoming Kansas State University Salina). As a Draftsman there, she drew up the blueprint plans for all fifty buildings on the base. She also worked for the architectural firms Wilson & Company, Bucher & Willis, and other independent architects in Salina. In a career shift, she later became a certified nursing assistant providing home care.

Catherine was a strong and independent woman. She enjoyed celebrating the holidays, traveling, dining out and loved her cats. Music brought her joy and comfort. She loved jitterbug dancing and was able to play the piano “by ear” up until the last few years of life. Many lives were touched with Catherine’s warm and fun-loving personality.

She cherished her family and was happiest when her children and grandchildren visited her. She will be missed by her family and good friends.

Catherine was preceded in death by her husband, Robert; her parents; sister Ruth Wight; and brother Daniel J. Bachofer, Jr.

Left to mourn her passing are her brothers: Robert Bachofer, of Salina and Francis Bachofer, of Sacramento, California; her children: Stephan Sweeney of Salina, Elaine Sweeney-Alarico of Basehor, KS; 4 grandchildren; 5 great-grandchildren; sister-in-law Helen Sweeney, and many nephews and nieces.

The family expresses appreciation to all the wonderful doctors, nurses, CNA’s, and hospice staff at the nursing homes and hospitals who provided invaluable care to Catherine for many years.

A funeral mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Saturday, March 19, 2022 at Sacred Heart Cathedral in Salina with graveside services at Mt. Calvary Cemetery, and a luncheon at the Sacred Heart Cathedral parish hall.

Memorials may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association or the American Diabetes Association.