Kathleen Montrey O’Malley

Kathleen Montrey O’Malley, a long-time resident of Andover Township and formerly South Orange, passed away on April 19, 2023. She was born February 19, 1931, to Catherine and Henry Montrey in St. Louis, Missouri. She graduated from St. Alphonsus Rock High School in the Class of 1948. She married Joseph O’Malley on September 24 of 1955, and moved from St. Louis to New Jersey in 1967 with her still-growing family.
Kathleen was preceded in death by her parents, her husband, and her brothers Hank, John, and Ray.
She is survived by her five children, Mary O’Malley, Katy Coumans, Joseph O’Malley, Meg Moorman and Patrick O’Malley. She is also survived by her pride and joy of eight grandchildren; Katy’s sons Jake, Mike and Sam, Joseph’s sons and daughter Ryan, Conor, and Cassidy, and Meg’s children Zach and Elise.
Kathleen devoted her professional life to the Catholic church, working in several different parishes in the Northern New Jersey area. After her retirement, she devoted her energy to defending and protecting children in care through the CASA (Court Appointed Special Advocates) program.
Kathleen became an avid fan of all sports in which her children or grandchildren were interested or participating, and always hosted the best summer vacations at “Camp Mammaw.” She stayed abreast of technological advances so she could easily communicate with her family around the world – starting with email on WebTV all the way through her fixation with her iPhone and Apple Watch. She may have inadvertently blocked people on a regular basis, but she enjoyed staying up to date and regularly posting on Facebook – and especially bragging about her grandchildren.
Kathleen loved watching the birds and deer that visited her beautiful lakefront property, and she befriended and named many of them. She was on less personal terms with the local black bears and wild turkeys, but also enjoyed their visits. She also loved dogs and enjoyed spoiling and pampering many different pups over the years, including her surviving dog Chessy and granddog Artemis, who were both happy to visit with her during her final days in hospice care.
She will be greatly missed by her remaining family, but will be happily reunited with her heavenly family members who preceded her. A memorial service will be held at St. Raphael’s church at 346 E. Mt. Pleasant Ave. in Livingston on May 27, 2023, at 11AM.
In lieu of flowers, the family requests that memorial donations be made to Piedmont CASA at 818 East High St. in Charlottesville, Virginia 22902. Donors may also visit their website at PCASA.org and select the “Kathleen O’Malley Memorial” campaign on the donation page.