Kathy was born in Fairview, Oregon (just east of Portland), the first child of three born to Dean & Charlotte Hull. She graduated from Centennial High School in 1974, and married Richard A. French on December 18, 1976. They were married at Smith Memorial Presbyterian Church in Fairview, the same church her family attended in her early years, and where her parents had also been married. Their children Christopher Alan and Heather Lyn, were born in 1980 & 1981 in Portland. Having enjoyed Alaska before the children were born, the family decided to return there in 1982. Other than spending a six year hiatus in Salem, Oregon during the '90s, the family has spent a total of 15 years in Alaska, most of those living in the Matanuska Valley.
Kathy was a small corporation bookkeeper and tax preparer for 25 years, and also served as a Director for the three family-held corporations. Having spent much of her youth working at a rhododendron & evergreen nursery, she used her knowledge of gardening and horticulture to landscape several Oregon properties upon request. She was also a certified owner-builder who designed, built, or remodeled 5 homes and 2 small subdivisions with her husband and children. She also home schooled her two children for 10 years, graduating them with honors in 1998. She adored her life as Richard's wife for 43 years, gave herself in service to others, her family, and to the Christian communities in which she lived. She loved to garden, quilt, and sew for her family and friends, as well as ride with her husband on their Honda Goldwing motorcycle or in their 1969 Dart GTS convertible. Kathy was 63 years of age, and died as a result of a prolonged weakening of her body due to severe pinching off of her spinal cord in her neck, also known as cervical stenosis, along with an acute onset of a fatal infection. Her fun sense of humor and creativity will be greatly missed.