Catherine Joanne Dvorak

Catherine J. Dvorak, 75, wife, mother, writer, editor, public relations specialist and educator, died May 11, 2025, at Stonecroft Health Campus after losing a long struggle with Parkinson’s-related illnesses. Having been born in Macon, Missouri, to the late Ruth and Joseph Bratek, Cathy attended schools in Columbia, Missouri, and the University of Missouri School of Journalism (BJ 1971). She completed her MA in journalism in 1974. Her first job out of college was with Southwestern Bell Telephone Company in Kansas City, where she was a public relations staff member. She worked as a public relations specialist at Northeast Missouri State University (now Truman State U.), at The University of Iowa and for the Indiana University School of Education. Her writing and editing won her several awards by the Council for the Advancement and Support of Education in the 1970s. Along with her public relations work, Cathy did newspaper reporting and free-lance writing for the Kansas City Star, the Lawrence Journal-World, and the Des Moines Register. Cathy also did some part-time journalism and public relations teaching at NMSU, The University of Iowa and Indiana University. She is survived by husband Jack Dvorak of Bloomington; son John T. Dvorak of Tempe, Arizona; and grandchildren Jackson Dvorak and Charlotte Mae Dvorak, both of Tempe, Arizona. She was “Aunt Cathy” to a niece and nephew. Her many other relatives and friends will miss her wry sense of humor, her gentle disposition, her sense of justice, her kindness, her caring nature, and her deep commitment to family. In reflecting on his mother’s love of family, son John has said, “Cathy was the best mother a little boy like me could have ever had, and I’m so grateful for her and the niceness she instilled in me. We always figured things out.” The family is especially thankful to medical personnel and staff at Stonecroft Health Campus and SouthernCare Hospice for their expertise and kindness. Graveside services and burial will take place at a later date in Fayette, Missouri. Memorial contributions may be made to The Michael J. Fox Foundation for Parkinson’s Research; Grand Central Station; P.O. Box 4777. New York, New York; 10163-4777.

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Catherine Joanne Dvorak

October 23, 1949 - May 11, 2025