LiveSmarterKatherine

The Legacy of Katherine, Queen of the Tot-Fairies

This particular photo is of an eight year old girl who died, as her parents and medical experts believe, due to
Leukemia brought on by pesticide spraying.
∞
(The below write-up is a condensed excerpt from a feature in Shawna Coronado's greening and better health book titled "Gardening Nude". To learn more
about the book, please go here: www.thecasualgardener.com/Book.html - Copyright 2008, Shawna Lee Coronado)

Jean-Marie Kauth, PhD. is an Assistant Professor at a university and her husband, Craig W. Colling, PhD., works
as a chemical engineer, they are parents of several lovely children and one very special daughter, Katherine, who
has become an inspiration to children every where.

The small community they lived in practiced night-time pesticide spraying, but Jean-Marie and Craig were
unaware of this. They were never notified of the spraying. Soon after the regular spraying of pesticides occurred,
they began to see their entire family, but most specifically, their daughter, Katherine, become seriously ill with a
Leukemia, which is linked with chemical exposure.

It was Katherine’s desire to live a full life where she did not have to suffer and neither would other children.
Little Katherine, after suffering more pain and trauma than most adults can imagine, helped form a plan with her
parents to get the word out on pesticide spraying. Katherine knew that one person could make a difference. With
her family's help, she mobilized a community to distribute “stop pesticide spraying” flyers all around the city. Her
inspiring quote about government decision makers who want to continue to spray toxic chemicals even when they
know it can hurt people: “But don’t they love their children?”

Katherine, in an amazing testimony to the power of her belief that one person can make a difference, walked door-
to-door with her family and friends to distribute the flyers even though she was quite ill. It was time well-spent
because that November, there was a ballot initiative for the city, and 75% of the voting citizens opposed
supporting on-going mosquito spraying. It was a small and sad victory for Katherine’s family, but an enormous
victory for the other children in the community who might have become ill because of the spraying. One person
can make a difference. Katherine made a difference for all those other people who might have been exposed to a
carcinogenic environmental hazard in her community.

Chemical exposure and contamination is one of the single largest issues in relationship to conservation. There are
many ways to get exposed to these chemicals, such as landfill leaks and contamination, insecticide spraying, food
spraying, household cleaning and much, much more. If you do only one thing in relation to the Green and Simple
Conservation Plan, please avoid using chemical solutions on your property as much as you can. Encourage your
community to utilize safe practices with chemicals as well so your environment is as clean as it can be.

After Katherine's tragic death in 2002, her parents and siblings are now singing Katherine’s swan song: they have
dedicated their lives to spreading the message of utilizing safe chemicals for the environment. Both Craig and Jean-
Marie work diligently to encourage safe lawn and garden treatments. Katherine’s dream was that all children
would be safe. That means utilization of safe lawn chemicals, safe mosquito control choices, safe house-hold
cleaning products, and much more. Katherine’s family feels that she should never have died, but now that she has,
her short life and incredible inspiration should not be wasted. Katherine believed she could make a difference, and
even in death, she is still touching the world with her gentle hope.

Once upon a time there was an amazing little girl who imagined a world where there were no harmful chemicals
to hurt children. She dreamed of a natural and safe world where food, air, and land have not been poisoned. Her
name was Katherine. Her legacy, the brilliant white-hot result of her short life, is to inspire the world to practice
better conservation so that all children can live in safety and health.

(This is a condensed excerpt from a feature in Shawna Coronado's greening and better health book titled "Gardening Nude". To learn
more about the book, please go here: www.thecasualgardener.com/Book.html - Copyright 2008, Shawna Lee Coronado)

"But Don't They Love Their Children?"

"But don't they love their children,
Mommy?" this is the quote from a dying
eight year old girl, Katherine. She and her
family forever changed a small
community and helped other children by
eliminating public pesticide spraying.

It's testimony that one person can truly
make a difference for the world,
no matter your age!

- - - - -

Now it's your turn - send suggestions, motivational
ideas, and comments to share with the
Live Smart Community at
LiveSmart@thecasualgardener.com.
Your comments will be posted at the end of this
story.

Comment -
This was the most touching and beautiful story - I cried my eyes out to know that Katherine died - I am going
to contact my local government today to see how I can make a difference! Thank you! - signed - Julia S.

Comment -
Hi! Do you have any other photos of Katherine? Please
tell her parents I am so sorry she passed away.- signed-
Susan G.

Reply -
Yes, I've placed a photo of beautiful Katherine, Queen of
the Tot-Fairies right next to this reply.

This is where you, the reader, can share and make a big difference for others.

Send suggestions, motivational ideas, and comments to share with the Live Smart
Community at LiveSmart@thecasualgardener.com. Your comments will be posted at the
end of this story and will be anonymous unless you wish otherwise.

Let's see if we can help others make a difference in their communities too!

Comment -
How do I contact the EPA to find out more about
chemical and pesticide abuse? - signed - Josh Z.

Reply -
The EPA has a lot of resources online. For pesticide use,
please go here: www.epa.gov/pesticides

COMMENTS - MAKE A DIFFERENCE

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