Kathleen E. Mason (Donnelly) Service Information

Kathleen E. Mason, 56, of Doylestown passed away on Saturday, May 21, 2022. She was the beloved wife of Allen B. Mason.

Born August 2, 1965 in Philadelphia, she was the eldest daughter of Kathleen (Figel) Donnelly and the late Joseph Donnelly. 

Kathy grew up in the Lawncrest neighborhood of Philadelphia and attended school at St. Williams, and later graduated from Cardinal Dougherty High School where she had been the 1^st Lieutenant of the marching band’s Drill Team.   Even during these early years, she was active in the community, volunteering to help with various projects for St. Williams, Girl Scouts and ran the Lawncrest Community Fourth of July Celebration.  Unable to sit still, Kathy had numerous jobs like dog-walking and baby-sitting before working her way up to a management position at the McDonalds at Adams and Rising Sun.  After graduating from high school, Kathy attended West Virginia Wesleyan College where she busied herself as a DJ (and later as the general manager) for the campus radio station FM92.  Ever busy, she simultaneously worked her way up to become the editor of the college’s newspaper, The Pharos.  Somehow, she was able to squeeze enough time in between these jobs and her classes for a love life and met Allen, her husband of the last 35 years.  They married in St. Williams Church after Christmas in 1986.  Afterwards, Kathy found herself back in West Virginia, and called Romney, WV home for the next four years where she soon found herself managing the Dominos Pizza in town.  Moving to State College, PA for Allen’s job brought some big changes - most notably her two children.  After living nearly seven years in State College, Kathy returned to the Philadelphia area to be close to friends and family.  Now calling Montgomeryville home, Kathy focused the next several years on homemaking and her children.  During this period, and led by her love for people, she began volunteering for the homeless.  Eventually, Kathy returned to the workforce, becoming a customer service representative for Enterprise Rent-a-Car, and was consistently included on their list of top performers for the entire Philadelphia area.  In 2008, Kathy joined North Penn Imports to run their automobile rental department for the next 10 years.  In August 2018 Kathy was diagnosed with Multiple System Atrophy (MSA) which, while it shares a number of symptoms as Parkinsons, advances through the body far more rapidly.  Unable to work due to MSA, Kathy set herself to fighting it both physically and mentally.  First, by moving in 2019 to a home in Doylestown especially well-suited for entertaining gatherings of friends and family, as well as volunteering to participate in studies so that others might be able to benefit via future research into the causes and cures for MSA.  Nearing the end of her journey, and in hospice, she set about crafting a final farewell designed to mitigate the sense of loss that would be felt by her family and closest friends.

Along with her husband and mother, Kathleen is survived by two children, David and Allison Mason; two sisters, Eileen Powell and her husband Sean and Noreen Hackman and her husband Joseph; one niece; and six nephews.

Relatives and friends are invited to greet the family Tuesday, May 24, 2022 from 6:00 to 8:00 pm at Joseph A. Fluehr III Funeral Home, 241 E. Butler Ave. (at Sandy Ridge Rd.), New Britain. A funeral mass will be held 10:00 am Wednesday, May 25, 2022 at Mary, Mother of the Redeemer Church, 1325 Upper State Road, North Wales. Interment will be held privately. 

Contributions in Kathleen’s name can be made to The MSA Coalition, https://www.multiplesystematrophy.org/donate/ .

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