Catherine Anne Burnett
(Wylie)
 

 April 16, 1947 -- August 10, 1998



Dies From Lightning Strike

Longmont Daily Times-Call 

Catherine Anne Burnett Wylie of Longmont died Monday, Aug. 10, 1998, while hiking in the Snowy Range west of Laramie, Wyo. She was 51.

She was born April 16, 1947, in Fort Knox, Ky., to Ralph and Pat Burnett. She moved with her family to Boulder and then to Longmont, where she attended Altona Elementary School and Longmont High School, graduating in 1965.

She married Rodger Raubach on June 11, 1967, at her parents' home west of Longmont. She attended the University of Colorado and then transferred to the University of Wyoming, where she earned her bachelor's degree in anthropology in 1969 and her master's degree in anthropology in 1971. Following her graduation she moved to California, where she began her family and was a homemaker and mother. She lived there until returning to Longmont in 1976.

She was the public relations/special events coordinator for the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in Denver from June 1978 through January 1981. She moved to Westminster in 1978. From November 1981 to April 1984 she was employed as a secretary/administrative assistant by TOPS Temporary Office Personnel Service. During this time she took technical classes in computer usages at Front Range Community College.

Catherine moved to Flagstaff, Ariz., where she was the owner/manager of The Office Manager, a secretarial service to small businesses, from June 1984 to September 1985. Also beginning in April, 1985, she was administrative assistant for the Office of Residence Life at Northern Arizona University. She took the position of legal secretary for the city attorney's office in Flagstaff in June, 1986.

Returning to college, she completed her M.A. degree in English as a second language at Northern Arizona University from August 1990 to May 1992. During this time she was also a teaching assistant, teaching ESL to foreign students.

After moving to Casper, Wyo., she worked as a receptionist/secretary at Olsten Temporary Services. She became an English instructor in September, 1993, teaching English to international students planning on attending American colleges and universities, first at Central Washington University in Ellensburg, Wash., and then at North Idaho College in Coeur d'Alene, Idaho.

Catherine again returned to Longmont in the spring of 1997 to be closer to her family. From September 1997 until recently she was the resident manager at the Wildwood Inn in Estes Park. At the time of her death she was the office manager for Peaceful Valley Ranch. For the past couple of years she was regional representative for the International Student Exchange, placing and assisting foreign exchange students in local schools.

She was a member of the Colorado Mountain Club, the Rocky Mountain Chapter Sierra Club and a former member of the Rocky Mountain Rescue Squad, where she used her skills as a successful technical climber. She enjoyed all types of outdoor activities, especially hiking, camping, and snowshoeing. She also enjoyed intercultural exchange, environmental education and was an excellent dancer. She was a beautiful, loving, caring, and gentle person who touched the lives of all she encountered.

Survivors include one daughter, Heidi Combs and her husband J.B. of Casper, Wyo.; one son, Emil Raubach of Casper, Wyo.; one granddaughter, Ashley Combs; her parents, Ralph and Pat Burnett of Longmont; one brother, Scott Burnett and his wife Susan of Longmont; her "soul partner," Eldon Gregory of Priest River, Idaho; two nieces, Stephanie and Heather; one nephew, Christopher; and her former husband, Rodger Raubach of Wyoming.

Memorial services will be held at 10:30 a.m. Sunday, Aug. 16, at Old Mill Park, 237 Pratt St. in Longmont, with the Rev. Marilyn Yoder Boeke of Central Presbyterian Church officiating. Cremation at Ahlberg Funeral Chapel and Crematory will follow the memorial services.

Friends are invited to an open house following the services at the home of Ralph and Pat Burnett, 2211 Riviera Place in Longmont.

Memorial contributions are suggested to the Mountain Prairie Council of Girl Scouts for the support of Meadow Mountain Ranch in care of Ahlberg Funeral Chapel, 326 Terry St., Longmont 80501.