Obituaries

Toni Sager
B: 1939-05-08
D: 2024-03-27
View Details
Sager, Toni
Joyce Babst
B: 1940-11-23
D: 2024-03-24
View Details
Babst, Joyce
Leonard Thornberry
B: 1964-01-28
D: 2024-03-23
View Details
Thornberry, Leonard
Howard Cheek
B: 1945-11-10
D: 2024-03-23
View Details
Cheek, Howard
Judith "Judie" Anderson
B: 1947-07-26
D: 2024-03-21
View Details
Anderson, Judith "Judie"
Len Tatum
D: 2024-03-21
View Details
Tatum, Len
Barbara Gibson
B: 1937-09-19
D: 2024-03-21
View Details
Gibson, Barbara
Bill Pounds
B: 1929-11-17
D: 2024-03-17
View Details
Pounds, Bill
Frank Davis
B: 1932-01-10
D: 2024-03-16
View Details
Davis, Frank
Julia Knight
B: 1931-12-16
D: 2024-03-15
View Details
Knight, Julia
Richard Kersh
B: 1938-07-21
D: 2024-03-13
View Details
Kersh, Richard
Joseph May
B: 1944-05-10
D: 2024-03-12
View Details
May, Joseph
Larry Walters
B: 1943-07-31
D: 2024-03-12
View Details
Walters, Larry
Justin Carroll
B: 1976-06-10
D: 2024-03-10
View Details
Carroll, Justin
Michael Newton
B: 1948-09-01
D: 2024-03-09
View Details
Newton, Michael
George McMartin
B: 1959-05-07
D: 2024-03-05
View Details
McMartin, George
Kerri Beier
B: 1966-04-18
D: 2024-02-29
View Details
Beier, Kerri
Beverly Shaw
B: 1936-08-10
D: 2024-02-29
View Details
Shaw, Beverly
Della Bebee
B: 1947-04-21
D: 2024-02-26
View Details
Bebee, Della
Allen Carpenter
B: 1940-07-12
D: 2024-02-26
View Details
Carpenter, Allen
John Newberry
B: 1931-11-21
D: 2024-02-24
View Details
Newberry, John

Search

Use the form above to find your loved one. You can search using the name of your loved one, or any family name for current or past services entrusted to our firm.

Click here to view all obituaries
Search Obituaries
3701 East 7th Street
Joplin, MO 64801
Phone: (417) 781-1711
Fax: (417)-781-3916

This Book of Memories memorial website is designed to be a permanent tribute paying tribute to the life and memory of Cathy VanOstran. It allows family and friends a place to re-visit, interact with each other, share and enhance this tribute for future generations. We are both pleased and proud to provide the Book of Memories to the families of our community.

Thank you.

Cancel
Select Candle

Obituary for Cathy Suzanne VanOstran

Cathy Suzanne  VanOstran
Cathy Suzanne VanOstran (née Riechman), of Joplin, passed away on December 31, 2016, surrounded by her family, after a two-year battle with cancer. She was 49.

Cathy was born March 9, 1967, in Joplin. She was a 1985 graduate of Parkwood High School and earned a bachelor’s degree from Missouri Southern State College. Cathy worked as a teacher at Christ’s Community United Methodist Church Discovery School, a substitute teacher in the Joplin R-VIII school district, and later, as a part of the Freeman Screen Team.

Cathy married Charles “Andy” VanOstran on February 19, 1988. He preceded her in death. She is survived by their children: Cort Andrew VanOstran, 28, of St. Louis; Collin Spencer VanOstran, 25, of Columbia, Missouri; and, Callie Dawn VanOstran, 21, of Joplin.

Cathy’s life was one of notable highs and lows. Her character was defined by the grace and tenacity with which she navigated them. Upon being widowed at the age of 30, Cathy dedicated her life to raising her three children, then ages two, five, and eight. She was a constant source of love, encouragement, and wisdom for her children, and set an example of faith and hope in the face of difficult circumstances.

Cathy had an incredible way of relating to almost everyone she met. She was a frequent confidant not only to her own children, but to their friends, who often sought out “Ms. V’s” advice and felt comfortable sharing their problems with her. Cathy’s life was consistently enriched by the love and unfailing support of her mother, Barbara Riechman. In addition to a close bond with her two sisters, Angela Wilkes and Cyndi Bennett, and a cousin, Susan Chambers, she was fortunate to enjoy a great number of close friends: the late Lisa Workman, Becky, Jody, Paula, Debi, Susan, Kathy, Michelle, Kent, Heather, Gina, Jan, Cassie, and others too numerous to mention.

Cathy loved animals and small children, with whom she could reliably establish an immediate rapport. She enjoyed music (especially Michael Jackson and Bonnie Raitt), funny movies (she could quote at length from Zoolander and Dumb and Dumber), and the works of Christian theologians (Hannah Whitall Smith was a favorite). Cathy’s favorite days were filled with trips to the College Skyline pool (where she intermittently served on the board of directors), walks at Wildcat Park or the Frisco Trail, and endless games of Scrabble with her family. To her children’s then-consternation (and now, great delight), she loved family photographs and insisted on taking them constantly.

Cathy’s children were her pride and joy. Her selfless dedication to her children’s lives produced two Harvard graduates and a daughter whose heart for people and missions has taken her as far away as Barbados and Taiwan. Even as her children came of age and found themselves in distant states and countries, Cathy was continually a source of encouragement and guidance, remaining intimately aware of, and involved in, their lives and adventures. Like any mother, Cathy was proud of her children and supported their endeavors; but she was always more interested in their development into good and generous people than in any worldly accomplishments.

In addition to her husband, Andy, Cathy was preceded in death by her father, Don Riechman. She is survived by her mother, Barbara Riechman, of Joplin; two sisters, Angela Wilkes (husband Keith), of Owasso, Oklahoma, and Cyndi Bennett (husband Grant), of Joplin; mother-in-law Betty VanOstran, of Joplin; and, her loving nephews and nieces.

Services will be at 2:00 p.m. Friday at Christ’s Community United Methodist Church, followed by a graveside committal at Stone Cemetery, Joplin. Visitation is from 6 to 7 p.m. Thursday, at Mason-Woodard Mortuary and Chapel, in Joplin.

Pallbearers will be Cort and Collin VanOstran, Keith Wilkes, Grant Bennett, Austin Wilkes, and Matthew Riechman Bennett.

Provide comfort for the family by planting a tree in memory of Cathy Suzanne VanOstran, please visit our Heartfelt Sympathies Store.

Recently Shared Condolences
Recently Shared Stories
Recently Shared Photos