Kathleen Francis Wiest (Lynch) age 74 of Yorkville, passed away peacefully on 12 October 2026 at The Reserve of Oswego Memory Care Facility with her husband at her side.
She was born April 29, 1952, in Dodgeville, WI to Francis (Jiggs) and Twila (Halverson) Lynch. On January 6, 1979, she married her husband Daniel W Wiest at St Joseph’s Catholic Church in Dodgeville, WI. They lived in Aurora, IL for 27 years and then moved to Yorkville in 2010.
Prior to marriage Kathleen worked as the purchasing agent at 3 local hospitals after graduating from Dodgeville High School. Following marriage and until the last child was in school Kathy was a “stay at home” Mom. She then worked nights for an insurance company as a data entry clerk. When the insurance company consolidated, she was let go and then worked as a receptionist at a dental office in Geneva, IL. She really loved getting to know and interacting with the patients. She worked there until retirement.
Daniel and Kathleen attended St Irene Catholic Church in Warrenville and following the move to Yorkville joined St Patrick Catholic Church. Kathleen and Daniel were members of the Joliet Diocese Catholic Engaged Encounter community and helped present pre-marital weekends. They presented on 1 or 2 weekends a year for almost 20 years. Kathleen and Dan, after the move to Yorkville, attended a “Light of the World” retreat and were part of a small faith group. They then helped out, working and presenting topics on the next retreats and aided in the formation of new small faith groups. Working with both of those ministries strengthened their marriage and kept their faith growing and deepening.
Kathleen enjoyed knitting and was an active participant in the St Patrick’s “Prayer Shawl” ministry. She also loved making counted cross stitch projects and giving them away as gifts to loved ones over the years. Kathleen really enjoyed doing Word Search puzzles and went through many books of those through the years. Kathleen loved the yearly “girls trip” to Kentucky to see her sister Marcia (and Billy). There were plenty of laughs, shopping and fun during those trips. She also really enjoyed the yearly summer trips to Northern Wisconsin with her whole side of the family. The 4-car caravan up and back, relaxing by the lake, barbeques, swimming, shopping and nightly card games always made for a fun week.
She was preceded in death by both her parents, brother Tim, sister Marcia (Billy) Ray and brother-in-law Tom Merritt.
Kathleen is survived by her husband Dan W; 3 children Lisa (Nick) Martinelli, Dan R (Samamtha), Matt (Kristin); sister Chris Merritt. Her grandchildren; Isabel Martinelli, Jace Martinelli and Sarah Wiest; special cousin Carolyn Inabnit; sisters-in-law and brothers-in-law, Mary Ann (Lyle) Antonson, John Wiest, Laurie (Jim) Goldthorpe, Larry (Julie) Wiest, Jeanne (Ted) Meister, Joe (Becky) Wiest, Billy Ray; many nieces, nephews, cousins, and friends.
During Kathy’s 14 months at The Reserve in Oswego, Dan visited her nearly every day. Over time, he came to know the management, nurses, and caregivers, all of whom knew him by name. Dan and his entire family extend their heartfelt thanks to everyone at The Reserve for the compassionate, conscientious care Kathy received.
A Funeral Mass will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Tuesday October 20, 2026 at St. Patrick Catholic Church, 406 Walnut Street, Yorkville, IL. Interment to follow in St. Patrick Cemetery Bristol, IL. Friends may visit from 4:00 p.m. until 7:00 p.m. on Monday, October 19, 2026 at Nelson Funeral Home, 1617 N. Bridge Street, Yorkville, IL. Arrangements made by Nelson Funeral Home & Crematory, www.NelsonFuneralHomes.com, or (630) 553-7611.