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Obituary for
Therese Ann (DeCoursey) Foley
(1926 - 2011)

Therese was born 1926 in Kansas City, Kansas, the youngest of Francis C. and Kate (Cotter) DeCoursey's nine children. She married Thomas Aquinas Foley, born 1923 in New York, in 1949. After their marriage they moved to California, where all of their eight children were born. At some point before 1990 Therese moved back to Kansas, spending the rest of her life there. Related Items: Picture of her parents on their wedding day, 1915. Items concerning her father and accounts of family life in the DeCoursey Family. Obituaries for her father Francis C. "Frank", sisters Mary Martin, Helen Ruysser and Loretta Foster and brothers Francis E. and Joseph.

Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri) Thursday, April 14, 2011 THERESE DeCOURSEY FOLEY Therese DeCoursey Foley, 84, Prairie Village, KS, passed away Mon., April 11, 2011. A Mass of Christian Burial will be 10 a.m., Sat., April 16, at St. Ann Catholic Church, Prairie Village; visitation at 9 a.m.; Rosary will be said at 9:30 a.m. A complete obit will appear Friday. (Arr.: Joseph A. Butler & Son, 913-371-7000.)

The Kansas City Star (Kansas City, Missouri) Friday, April 15, 2011 Therese Ann DeCoursey Foley FOLEY Therese Ann DeCoursey Foley, 84, of Prairie Village, KS, passed away Monday, April 11, 2011, at Shawnee Mission Medical Center surrounded by her children. The Funeral Liturgy will be held at 10 a.m. on Saturday, April 16, at St. Ann's Catholic Church, 7231 Mission Rd., Prairie Village, KS. Burial will follow at Mt. Calvary Cemetery, KCKS. Friends may call from 9-10 on Saturday. A Rosary will be recited at 9:30 a.m. at the church. Therese was born on September 18, 1926, to Frank and Catherine "Kate" DeCoursey. She was the youngest of nine children and grew up in Kansas City, KS. She attended St. Mary's Grade School, Bishop Ward High School and St. Mary's College in South Bend, Indiana where she met her husband, Thomas Foley. They married at the University of Notre Dame in 1949 and, after their first year of marriage, moved to California where their eight children were born. Therese was a lifelong educator and taught in Catholic schools for most of her 25-year career. Her deep and abiding Catholic faith guided her daily steps and sustained her in difficult times. She was devoted to her family, her many friends, and her Church. Service to others was a constant in her adult life and she gave freely of herself to those struggling to rebuild lives marred by addiction. Her wonderful sense of humor, keen mind, and genuine humility endeared her to young and old alike. She took life seriously but not herself. She was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, her brothers Frank and Joe, and her sisters Rita, Mary, Helen, Jean, Loretta and Loraine. She is survived by her son, Tom (Sheila) Foley, and her daughters Kate (John) Notman, Terry Foley, Mo (Tom) Hurlbutt, Patty (Mike) Daly, Liz Foley, Ann (Scott) Cromie, Helen "Cheeko" (Mark) Penrod, and her seventeen grandchildren Sean, Patrick, Terry, Tom, Kasey, Mary Kate, Kevin, Matthew, Daniel, Michael, Elizabeth, Brian, Michael, Sarah, Tim, Molly and Connor. If you prefer, contributions can be made to Oblates of Saint Benedict's Abbey, 102 N. Second St., Atchison, KS 66002, or the Carmelite Nuns of Carmel, Carmelite Monastery, 27601 Hwy 1, Carmel, CA 93923. (Arr.: Joseph A. Butler & Son, 19th & Minnesota Ave., KCK, 913-371-7000; butlerandsonfuneralhome.com.) Online obituary and guest book. (Until Apr. 14, 2012)

Transcribed by Erica DeCoursey 2011