Jim & Kay Frieda

A joint memorial mass for Kay and Jim Frieda will be held in Duncan on
May 5th at 2pm at Whitt Funeral Home. It will also be live streamed by visiting www.whittfh.com.

In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate any charitable donations to St. Gabriel’s Hospice, 2501 Parkview Drive, Suite 100, Fort Worth, TX 76102.



Kathryn “Kay” Frieda
March 29, 1943 – April 4, 2022

Kathryn “Kay” Frieda, age 79, decided to rejoin her loving husband, Jim, on
April 4, 2022.

Kay was born on March 29, 1943 in St. Louis, Missouri to Mary and Gene Hedrick. She lived there until she left for college at the University of Missouri-Kansas City where she earned a B.S. in Dental Hygiene.

She practiced that for 45 years, mostly in Duncan, and loved every minute of it.

She enjoyed playing in her garden, cooking, reading, entertaining and somehow earned a PhD in shopping. She was a wicked teller of jokes, often told while a patient tried and failed to sit still in her dental chair. She just liked to have fun.

Kay was preceded in death by her loving husband of 53 years, Jim. She is survived by her wonderful son, Gene and daughter-in-law Lynn, and a beautiful grandson Lorenzo; two sisters, Patricia and Mary Anne; a brother-in-law, Lee, and sister-in-law, Patricia; and numerous nieces and nephews.


James Michael “Jim” Frieda
March 1, 1942 – December 7, 2021

James Michael "Jim" Frieda, age 79, passed to a better place on December 7, 2021. Jim was born on March 1, 1942 to Leo and Theresa Frieda in St. Louis, Missouri.

He found his calling as a soldier, drafted into the Vietnam War, serving as a forward observer in a field artillery unit. As he was departing for Vietnam, he married the love of his life, Kathryn Hedrick, to whom he remained married for the next 53 years.

He graduated from St. Benedicts with a B.A. in History and earned his J.D. from Oklahoma City University Law School.

He left the military in 1978 and became a lawyer in Duncan, Oklahoma, initially serving as a deputy district attorney before going into private practice. He finished his career in service to the City of Duncan as City Manager, having served as city attorney for two decades prior to his appointment.

He loved Duncan: the city, his friends, and the walks he'd take with a series of dogs - Sam, Bud, Shirley, Sarge and Ralph - over the years. He gave his family a wonderful home and many great memories of the little moments in time that add up to a life.

Jim was a great storyteller of his youthful adventures in St. Louis, growing up as a 2nd generation Italian immigrant. The stories of his childhood rivalled those of Holden Caulfield, the protagonist of his favorite book, The Catcher in the Rye. He was fiercely proud of his Italian upbringing and his service to country as a soldier in Vietnam and Germany. The history of the world prior to 1964 will not be the same without him telling it.

He is survived by his loving wife, Kay; his son, Gene and his wife Lynn; grandson, Lorenzo; his brother and sister-in-law, Lee and Pat Frieda of St. Louis; his sisters-in-law, Patricia Hedrick and Mary Anne Falkenstein; and many nieces and nephews.



 

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