Kathleen “Kit” Miriam Ballard Heck, age 89 years, of Raritan Township, NJ, died peacefully on Good Friday, April 2, 2021 at Hunterdon Care Center, Raritan Township, NJ.

Kathleen, otherwise known as “Kit” was born in Buffalo, NY daughter of the late Levi and Kathleen Ballard and was raised in Douglaston, Long Island, NY.  She attended Lasell Junior College with an associate degree in marketing now known as Lasell University in Auburndale, Massachusetts.

Her passions in life included reading, travel to Europe, cruises, season tickets to symphony orchestras (including the Boston Pops) attending many winter Olympics and Broadway Plays.  She loved art and attending many art galleries in both the US and abroad. She and her husband Otto shared in their love of travel by bringing with them some of their grandchildren who loved being immersed in local culture and having wine and beer served with meals.  She loved reading sometimes at the expense of burning the vegetables when preparing dinner.  Her sister lovingly shared she burned the bottoms out of many tea kettles when failing to turn the burner off when the water was boiling. Many of her children often remarked when attending college that “dorm food was wonderful”; cooking was not her passion!  It was shared by family, on more than one occasion, much to her father’s dismay, backing out the car out of the garage knocking down the mailbox at her father’s summer home.

She believed her children should be educated and encouraged attending college upon graduation from high school.  To assist in monetary payment of this she worked at the Hunterdon Medical Center for many years as a unit clerk.

Kit loved Christmas and decorating her home in anticipation of this day with the tree often going up months in advance of Christmas with the tree coming down months after Christmas .  Christmas music was played year round. Kit loved composing and sending out annual Christmas newsletter updating all on their travels, children and grandchildren.  

She supported, many times un-enthusiastically her husband’s passion of having snakes and rescued owls recuperate in their home.  The owls were evicted when found flying around the home from curtain rod to curtain rod leaving little remains in gratitude for the hospitality extended to them.  On one occasion, Kathy encountered small owl walking down the hallway in the middle of the night on the way to bathroom.

Her beloved husband of sixty-eight years, Otto Ambrose Heck, died on February 4 of this year. She was also preceded in death by two children, Kerry in 1971 and Donna in 2014.

Surviving are her children and their spouses, Kathleen and Mark Herbers, Richard and Karen Heck, Barbara Heck, Dianne and Ricky Paetzell, Jeanna and Rodney Trugman, and Peter and Patty Heck; her sister and spouse Carol and Steve Mournighan; many grandchildren and great grandchildren; several nieces, nephews and extended family; and many friends.

Kit will lie in repose on Wednesday, April 7, 2021 from 6:00-8:00 p.m. in the Chapel of Wright & Ford Family Funeral Home and Cremation Services, 38 State Highway 31, Flemington, NJ.

There will also be an additional period of visitation at the funeral home on Thursday, April 8, 2021, from 9:00-9:30 a.m..

A Mass of Christian Burial officiated by Rev. Matthew Marinelli will be celebrated at St. Magdalen Church, 105 Mine Street, Flemington, NJ on Thursday, April 8, 2021 at 10:00 a.m., and to which all are welcome.

Following mass, Kit will be laid to rest with her beloved Otto in the family plot at Mount St. Mary Cemetery, 172-00 Booth Memorial Avenue, Flushing, NY 11365.

Realizing that many people will be unable to attend due to the current pandemic restrictions, the visitation Thursday morning beginning at 9:00 a.m. followed by the Mass of Christian Burial at 10:00 a.m. will be live-streamed with the following link allowing you to be a part of the services virtually: please click HERE to watch the VIEWING at the funeral home followed by the MASS at church (kindly ensure that you do not have a pop-up blocker installed).

It is important to remember that given the current state of the pandemic, masks must be worn at all times on funeral home, church, and cemetery grounds, and social distancing must be maintained. Please follow the instructions of the Wright & Ford Care Team Family Ambassadors upon arrival at each location.

You are encouraged to visit Kit’s permanent life celebration site at www.wrightfamily.com to light a candle of hope, leave messages of condolence, share words of comfort and recollection, and post photographs of her life.

In lieu of flowers, contributions in her honor may be made to the American Cancer Society or to the American Heart Association.

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Wright & Ford, your local, family owned & operated “Life Celebration Home”