Mary Kathleen Jacobson

Mass of Christian Burial for Mary Kathleen Jacobson will be held at 11 a.m. Tuesday, September 24, 2024 at St. Matthew’s Catholic Church with Most Rev. Steven Biegler, Bishop of the Diocese of Cheyenne officiating. Rite of Committal will follow at Mt. Pisgah Cemetery. Visitation will be held at 6:00 p.m. at Gillette Memorial Chapel with a Vigil service starting at 7:00 p.m. Mary Kathleen Jacobson, age 87, of Gillette, Wyoming, formerly of Laramie, Wyoming died at the Legacy Living and Rehabilitation Center on Tuesday, September 17, 2024. Mrs. Jacobson was born March 29, 1937 in Deadwood, South Dakota, the daughter of Clifford and Roxeanne Skinner. She was raised in the Black Hills of South Dakota and Dillon, Colorado before moving to Laramie as a teenager. She graduated from Laramie High School and attended the University of Wyoming, graduating with a B.A. in education. Following her graduation, she was employed by the U.S. Bureau of Mines in Laramie, Wyoming as part of the secretarial pool. She was the switchboard operator and moved into her favorite work as a personnel management specialist. Through her work she met Irven “Jake” Jacobson. After she turned him down for a date, he found the courage a couple years later to ask her out again. She said yes, and they were married in 1964 in Estes Park, Colorado. They have one son, Father Cliff Jacobson, pastor of St. Patrick’s Catholic Church in Casper, Wyoming. She loved her Catholic faith, as a member of St. Laurence O’Toole Catholic Church in Laramie and a member of St. Matthew’s Catholic Church in Gillette. She served the church in many ways, including formation in lay ministry, working to develop programming to support and walk with fallen-away Catholics, and coordinating Perpetual Adoration of the Blessed Sacrament at St. Laurence O’Toole. At the Legacy, she loved being part of the weekly Mass. Like her father, who was a forest ranger in the Snowy Range Mountains, Kathleen had a love and passion for the beauty of God’s creation. As a teenager and young adult, she spent her summers at the Keystone Ranger Station. As a wife and mother, she spent time with her family camping and fishing in the Keystone area, searching for the best fishing holes to “drown worms” and passing on her love and knowledge of the wildflowers, trees and animals of the area. After around 50 years in Laramie, Kathleen and Jake moved to Gillette in 2005 due to Jake’s health and to be close to their son, who was pastor of St. Matthew’s Catholic Church. After a serious bout of pneumonia and time in the rehabilitation center at The Legacy, she made the decision in March of 2017 to remain as a resident of the Legacy. Over the last 7 years, she was graced with many great friends at the Legacy community. There, she also loved playing bingo and she discovered a love of stamping and card making. Time with friends, birthday parties, time spent with her son and the care and compassion of the staff of The Legacy brought great joy and support to her life. She was preceded in death by her father, Clifford Skinner; her mother, Roxeanne Skinner; and her husband, Irven A. “Jake” Jacobson. She is survived by her son, Father Cliff Jacobson of Casper, Wyoming. Memorials and condolences may be sent in care of Gillette Memorial Chapel 210 West 5th Street, Gillette, WY 82716. Condolences may also be expressed at www.gillettememorialchapel.com