Shortly before the fall 2009 semester ended, public relations professor Kathryn Edwards Lee went to Brenda Wrigley, the department chair, and told her she needed to step down.

“I was devastated when I heard the news,” Wrigley said. “I knew victims often don’t survive ovarian cancer.”

Wrigley wasn’t just Lee’s colleague, but a close friend for several years. That she was stepping down was heartbreaking.

Lee, 65, died in her sleep June 20 in her Syracuse home. An employee at Syracuse University for 20 years, Lee was the speechwriter for former SU chancellor Buzz Shaw. After his departure from the university, she became a public relations professor at the S.I. Newhouse School of Public Communications.

Lee is survived by her husband, Jeffrey Stonecash, a political science professor at the Maxwell School of Citizenship and Public Affairs, her son, Joshua Lee and her daughter, Hannah Lee.

Lee was diagnosed with ovarian cancer in November 2009, a month before she got married. The disease is a serious form of cancer that is often caught late, Wrigley said, and it comes with no warning signs.

“I saw her a few times during her last years,” Wrigley said. “I was gratefully concerned.”

Writing was Lee’s strong suit professionally, and it transferred well to her ability to teach. She constantly mentored and coached her students.

“Teaching writing requires a great deal of attention and time, and can be frustrating,” Wrigley said. “The students need extra help, or don’t always understand what they need to do. And she was patient. She was wonderful.”

Wrigley was close with Lee during one of the most joyous moments of Lee’s life – her engagement to her husband,Stonecash. Despite the cancer diagnosis, the two married in December 2009.

“We had a really terrific five years,” Stonecash said. “We always got along great, there was never a harsh word.”

When people get to a certain age, they understand that the probability of becoming ill grows higher, Stonecash said. He and Lee would not let cancer hinder their marriage.

“It was pretty scary. The doctor’s make it clear that it’s devastating. But you certainly don’t change your plans,” he said.

Stonecash describes Lee as a “sucker for animals” who often worked with homeless dogs and cats. She volunteered at organizations such as the Benjamin Rush Center, Syracuse Opera and Crouse Hospital.

Stonecash said he knew the prospects for beating ovarian cancer were not great, so he and Lee took every opportunity they could to travel. They traveled to England, Italy, Aruba, the Cayman Islands, Seattle and the Adirondacks, among other places, he said.

Lee was also a dedicated Gold’s Gym member, where Wrigley was a member as well.

“I lost a lot of weight over the years,” Wrigley said, “and she’d run up behind me on the elliptical machine and tell me, ‘Hey Skinny, how are you doing?’”

For Wrigley, the loss hasn’t sunk in yet.

“She was very brave, much braver than I would’ve been in similar circumstances,” she said. “She had a way of dealing with things, I admired her for that.”

Published on June 27, 2012 at 12:00 am

Contact Marwa: meltagou@syr.edu | @marwaeltagouri