Katherine Anne Morris

Despite hopes that 2021 would be a better year, it has not lived up to that expectation yet! On January 11, against her will, and after a valiant four month fight against bladder cancer, Katherine A. Morris passed on to her new adventure. What that adventure will be is anyone’s guess, but we are all sure it will include dogs as they were her great love! Katherine, known as Kathy to her friends and family, began her first adventure here on earth in Chicago in 1946. And what a diverse adventure it was! Lovingly adopted at six months of age by her parents, Earl and Kay Morris, Kathy’s adventure began with a love for horses. In her teen years, Kathy learned to ride and spent a week for several summers at a dude ranch with her brother, John, who insists that she always counted out the peas on both their plates so she wouldn’t have to eat more than he did! Kathy’s love for animals did not stop with horses. Her first pet was a dog named Rascal. That special relationship launched her into a life-long passion for dogs, especially miniature pinschers (‘min pins’) who became her constant companion.  After graduating from Western Illinois University with a degree in Business Administration, Kathy’s life adventure took her to the classroom where she taught high school for seven years and found that she loved working with people. From there she went to work for the hotel management company A.I.R.C.O.A. as a controller for several hotels. She earned her MBA in accounting during those years.Realizing that her passion for dogs and love for teaching could be combined in teaching dog training, Kathy eventually started her own school, Jump Start Dog Sports, in Yorba Linda, CA. Despite the common belief that dog training is about training the dog, Kathy’s motto was “training people to train their pets”. One of those skills was teaching people to keep their dog’s attention by learning to be “more interesting than dirt!”  You know the saying that someone never forgets a face? Well, Kathy never forgot a dog. And her animal training was not just with dogs, one of her adventures was helping a friend clicker train several lions, a tiger and a black leopard at a wildlife foundation. Now who can say they’ve done that!?Always liking what is different, Kathy focused on raising and training the blue miniature pinscher color line showing her dogs across the United States. Her own Jiminy Cricket distinguished himself winning many competitions and titles. He was her friend to the end along with Trav, her newest blue min pin.  When Kathy moved to Prescott in 2010, she again began training dogs at Whiskers Barkery and eventually started KAMsK9s Dog Training.  She also served as an AKC evaluator and served on several Miniature Pinscher Club Boards including the Miniature Pinscher Club of America.  Kathy loved to travel in her RV, showing her min pins in more than half of the 50 United States and visiting every National Park West of the Mississippi. She was a friend to everyone she met along the way. Even during her fight with cancer, Kathy was busy planning another RV trip for 2021 to continue her quest to visit all of the National Parks. Kathy traveled extensively outside of the United States, as well, visiting many places in Europe, South America, Asia, and Africa. She had a passion and gift for photography and took many trips to photograph the unique beauties of different regions of the world: Cambodia, Tanzania, and Rwanda which was her favorite. She spent a month in Rwanda photographing the gorillas in their natural habitat. At one point, a big male gorilla walked up to her, gave her a good sniff and then smacked her on the butt as he walked past sending her and her equipment flying. She visited Alaska more than once and especially enjoyed the opportunity to capture in photos the wonders of Denali National Park.Kathy loved her family. She is predeceased by her parents, Earl and Kay Morris, and is survived by her brother, John Morris and his wife, Kathy, her nieces Renee Bolles and Sara Morris, her nephews Nathaniel Morris and Tim Morris, as well as her great nieces and nephews – Lydia, Titus, Silas, and Hannah Bolles and Ayden, Henna, Rett, and Amia Morris.  Taken from us before we were ready, Kathy will be deeply missed by all of her family and friends who will forever remember her genuine spirit, her cheerful smile, her contagious laugh and her loving presence.  She left an example and a legacy that all who knew her treasure.A memorial service will be held for Kathy at a later date when the weather is warm and it is safe for her friends and family to gather and celebrate a life well lived. If you would like to give a gift to honor Kathy, please make a donation to a “no kill” dog rescue or one of the national parks she enjoyed so much. Kathy loved living in Prescott within the trees, trails and lakes and would want you to remember her as you take your dogs out to enjoy this beautiful area of Arizona.