Wichita, Kansas — Raised in a Colorado farm family, Dorothy Henkel moved to Wichita in 1944 with her new husband, Frank, who had just accepted a job to coach at East High School.  She had only known him for a couple months, but World War II was moving toward an end and both were ready for a new adventure in Kansas. She earned a degree from Wichita University and taught modern dance at East High.  With two children, Cathy and Marc, soon on board, she shifted to a career as an elementary school secretary.  In some 30 years in Wichita's public school system, she worked at Adams, Kos Harris, South Hillside and Kellogg elementaries. Active in state and national school secretary organizations, she was also a bowling and bridge enthusiast, and astute in all kinds of crafts.  Her overwhelming passion, though, was cats. Even though she had but a half-dozen beloved ones in her lifetime, almost everything in her home had a cat theme, right down to the Catmas tree for the holidays that displayed only kitty ornaments.  She died at the age of 97 after surviving Covid but not its after-effects.  Interred at Old Mission Mausoleum, she was preceded in death by her parents, Linus "Bill" and Elda Harmon, of Center, Colo.; her husband Frank in 1997, and her brother Jack Harmon. She is survived by daughter Cathy of Seattle; son Marc (Christine) of Oklahoma City; granddaughter Kara Cordell (Steve) and two great-grandsons (Jakob and Will), all of Oklahoma City.