Kathreen Mary Johnston

March 17, 1953 - December 18, 2018

Dr. Kathreen Johnston, a brilliant geneticist and beloved daughter, sister, wife and mother, died on December 18, 2018, at her home in Burlingame, surrounded by her loving family. She was 65 years old. The cause of death was ovarian cancer, which she had fought successfully for over eleven years.

Kay was born in Chicago on March 17, 1953 to Richard and Mary Johnston. She grew up in the suburbs of Chicago and New York. She was the valedictorian of her high school class in Mountain Lakes, New Jersey, and graduated magna cum laude from Princeton University and graduated from Johns Hopkins Medical School

Kay never traveled growing up, except to Wisconsin to see the cousins and grandparents, but the travel bug bit Kay when she was in high school. Her girl scout troop sold Christmas wreaths for years, eventually raising enough money to go to Europe on a shoestring in 1969, where they celebrated Bastille Day in Paris and watched the moon landing from Amsterdam. During her years at Princeton, Kay earned money as a “guinea pig” at a pharmaceutical company, so she could travel during her summer vacations. Medical school was just another chance to see the world; Kay spent her summers at a cholera clinic in Bangladesh and at hospitals in London and Paris. At every phase of Kay’s life and on various continents, Kay accumulated dear friends who maintained a special connection with her throughout her life. Kay moved to San Francisco in 1979 to work as a pediatric resident at UCSF. After completing her residency, while pursuing a fellowship in genetics at UCSF, Kay reconnected with her Princeton friend and Harvard PhD Leslie (“Les”) Timpe, who was a postdoc at UCSF. Les remembered Kay as “the prettiest girl at Princeton.” The couple married in 1984 at St. John of God Church in San Francisco, and moved to Burlingame in 1986. Kay was a Clinical Assistant Professor of Pediatrics at Stanford University Medical Center from 1986 to 1993. From 1993 to 2015, Kay was a Clinical Geneticist at Kaiser Permanente in San Francisco and Chief of the Genetics Department for 10 years. She was an expert in metabolic conditions in children and adults and went to great lengths to advocate for her patients. She was a mentor for many residents, fellows, genetic counselors at UCSF, and was on the clinical faculty there.

Kay and Les raised their two children, Robert and Clara Timpe, in Burlingame. Kay brought her joy, passion and intensity to every aspect of their family life. Kay and Les infected their children with the travel bug, taking them all over the world on amazing adventures. They also taught their children to love the outdoors, theater, music and books. The family spent many happy hours attending and performing in musical and theatrical productions. Their Christmas Eve cookie exchange, concert and reading of “Twas The Night Before Christmas” was the highlight of every Christmas for decades.

Most of all, Kay loved spending time with her family and friends, to whom she was fiercely and selflessly devoted. She was a proud Democrat and feminist. Throughout her life, Kay was a devout Catholic, and her faith sustained her while she waged a valiant 11-year battle against the disease that took her life.

Kay is survived by her parents, Richard and Mary Johnston of San Francisco; her husband Les Timpe of Burlingame; her son Robert Timpe of Redwood City; her daughter Clara Timpe of San Francisco; her brother Richard Johnston of Vienna, Virginia; her brother Mark Johnston of Syracuse, New York; and her sister Carolyn Johnston of San Francisco, along with their spouses; and numerous nieces, nephews, great-nieces, greatnephews and cousins.

A funeral mass will be held at 2 pm on Sunday, December 23, 2018, at Our Lady of Angels Church in Burlingame, with a reception immediately after mass in the adjacent Parish Hall. The interment will be at 10:30 a.m. on Wednesday, December 26, 2018, at Holy Cross Cemetery in Colma.

If desired, in lieu of flowers, people may choose to donate to The Gubbio Project, which provides Sacred Sleep, Community, and Sanctuary for the Homeless at Saint Boniface Church in the Tenderloin and St. John the Evangelist Church in the Mission in San Francisco. Information about online donations can be found at www.thegubbioproject.org/ donate/