Kathy Fortney, 83, of Bismarck, N.D., passed away peacefully on June 25, 2026 after a battle with dementia. Jesus has restored her memory and she is now walking hand in hand with Him.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Tuesday, July 7, 2026, at 10:00 a.m., at Ascension Catholic Church in Bismarck, N.D. Following Mass, the family invites you to join them for fellowship at the church. Kathy will be laid to rest at St. Mary’s Cemetery.

Kathleen Marilyn Cosgriff was born to Leo and Marjorie Cosgriff on December 16, 1942 in Minneapolis, Minn. Their family moved to Fargo, N.D. during grade school. The oldest of four children, she attended Shanley High School and graduated in 1960. Upon graduation, she attended Interstate Business College in Fargo and went on to work for Northwestern Bell as an executive secretary.

On February 13, 1965, she married her high school sweetheart, Charles Thomas Fortney, who she famously asked to the Shanley Sadie Hawkins Dance senior year.

Following their wedding was a move to Brookings, S.D. In 1967, they welcomed their first child, Michael. Cheryl followed in 1969. The family moved to Fargo in 1970 when Chuck took a professorship at Moorhead State. After the birth of their third child, Aaron, in 1973, the family moved to Bismarck where Chuck was professor of sociology at Mary College, now University of Mary. They have been residing in the same house ever since.

Kathy was a loving and conscientious homemaker, gardener and bargain hunter. There wasn’t a school concert, dance recital, play, game or track meet she missed. Her faith and family were her number one priority where memory-making meals and Fortney Family Christmases honored both. As her children grew older, she worked with the North Dakota Catholic Conference and Public Service Commission before retiring in 2006.

Kathy carried a quiet and reserved disposition but an unrelenting persistence. She was a behind the scenes prayer warrior who loved her people fiercely, and did everything in her power to accommodate their needs. She prayed deeply and never wasted an opportunity to share her unwavering faith. Her grace giving generous spirit is profoundly missed.

In her later years, she was a loving grand mother and enjoyed her nine grand children, volunteering for weekly Perpetual Adoration, and attending bible study.

Kathy is survived by her spouse, Charles (Chuck); children Mike (Tanya) Fortney (Mandan), Cheryl (Clark) Dietz (Fargo) and Aaron (Lisa) Fortney (Bismarck); siblings Thomas Cosgriff (Mandeville, La.), Mary Hachenburg (La Grange, Ill.) and Susan Hutchinson (Bellevue, Wash.); grand children, Brooke, Zachary Fortney; London, Sloane Fischer (children of Mike and Tanya); Grace, Samuel, and Evalyn Dietz (children of Cheryl and Clark) and Adam (Arelissa), Alyssa Fortney (children of Aaron and Lisa). 

She was preceded in death by her parents, Leo and Marjorie Cosgriff and grand daughter, Anastasia Fortney.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the North Dakota Right to Life, PO Box 551, Bismarck, ND 58502.