Kathryn Morecraft

Some people live in a way that quietly stitches beauty into the world around them. Kathryn Morecraft was one of those people. Her life was made up of simple pieces, sewn together with work and love and faith, until the whole thing formed something warm and deeply meaningful. On December 4, 2025, at the age of 81, that beautiful life came to its gentle close as she passed away in the comfort of her rural West Union home.

She was born on May 19, 1944, in York Township and raised on the family farm. That farm shaped her early. It taught her to work hard, to show up, to do what needed to be done without complaint. Those lessons became part of who she was, the foundation of everything she built later. In high school, she met Larry Morecraft, and that was the beginning of a lifelong partnership. They were sweethearts from the start. She graduated from Marshall High School in 1962, and that same year, on August 17, they married. Not long after, they moved to Joplin, MO, where they would raise their family and spend more than twenty years together. Kathryn attended Ozark Christian College for a year before Mark was born, and her love of learning naturally led her into volunteering as a librarian in local elementary schools. After all, books mattered to her. She delighted in buying books for people, giving these small treasures away to anyone who showed the slightest interest (the writer of this obituary included).

In her forties, Kathryn surprised no one by deciding to take on a new challenge. She entered nursing school and even took a speech class alongside her son, Stephen. He earned a B+. She earned an A (and had fun reminding him of that little detail for years afterward.) In May of 1988, Kathryn and Larry moved back to the West Union area, and she soon stepped into a long nursing career at Union Hospital in Terre Haute, IN. For twenty-two years, she cared for people with the same steadiness that had always been part of her. Her work with the National Association of Orthopedic Nursing became something she poured herself into. She served in several roles, traveled to almost every national conference, and built friendships that lasted.

After she retired in 2011, Kathryn settled into a quieter pace. Life slowed just enough for her to savor the simple things she loved. She became an even more passionate reader and served on the West Union Library Board. She quilted, keeping alive her tradition of stitching a quilt for every child and grandchild, each one a piece of her love made visible. She even made one for the West Union Fourth of July fundraiser auction a few years ago but refused to put her name on it. Giving the quilt was what mattered to her, not being noticed for it. She took the time to travel, too. Cruises with family. Weekend trips to Branson. A visit to the Grand Canyon. Kathryn loved seeing new places, especially when she could share them with the people she loved. Yet even as she enjoyed these things, her deeper joy was always found in serving people, in doing small, faithful things that made someone else's load a little lighter.

After Larry passed in 2016, that calling rose to the surface again. She began helping at the Prust-Hosch Funeral Home, carrying on the path he had walked before her. It may have been listed as "part-time", but Kathryn treated it as something far more than a job. She took real pride in what she did with us. She would cancel a doctor's appointment if it meant she could help with a service. She would drive by ahead of time to see if the walk needed to be cleared or if she should bring a leaf blower. She took home the bathroom towels to wash them, so families always walked into something fresh and cared for. These were not tasks to her. They were acts of service that gave her a sense of purpose and belonging. And the truth is, she did belong with us. She wove herself into our days with the same quiet care and dedication she brought to everything else in her life, and her absence will leave a space that we are sure no one could fill.

The kind of life Kathryn lived does not grow by accident. It grows from faith. Kathryn's walk with the Lord guided her decisions, her relationships, and her sense of purpose. As a long-time member of the West Union Christian Church, she carried Scripture not just in her mind, but in her actions. Her faith showed up in the way she served without being asked, in the way she worried more about others than herself, and in the way she faced the end of her life with calm assurance. She knew where she was going. She trusted the One who was leading her there. And in that trust, her life came together in quiet completeness, her final moments stitched with the same peace she had given to so many others.

She is survived by her sons, Mark (Veronica) Morecraft and Stephen Morecraft; by her daughter, Lynetta Morecraft; by six grandchildren, Heath (Elisa) Morecraft, Tabitha (Austin) Ward, Amber (Kory) Griffith, Kathryn Smith, Haley Jo Morecraft, and Caleb Smith; by fifteen great-grandchildren and one great-great-grandchild (with another on the way); by her brother & sister-in-law, Robert (Ann) Ledermann; and by her brother-in-law, Wilford (Carolyn) Leasure. She is also survived by several nieces and nephews, as well as her dear friends, Wanda Rhodes, Pam Poorman, and Diane Wyman. She was preceded in death by her husband of 53 years, Larry "Sug" Morecraft; by her parents, Fenton Ledermann & Edith (Wright) Ledermann; and by her sister, Charlotte Leasure.

In honor of the years of care Kathryn gave as a nurse, the Wabash Valley Nursing Honor Guard will give the Nightingale Tribute at 4:00 p.m. on Tuesday, December 9th, at the Prust-Hosch Funeral Home in West Union. A time of visitation will follow until 7:00 p.m. on Tuesday. Funeral services will be held at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, December 10th, at the funeral home with Freddie Morecraft officiating. Burial will follow in the Ohio Cemetery. Memorials may be made to the Ohio Cemetery or to the American Cancer Society, and memorial envelopes will be available at the funeral home.