Katie’s Story

Kathleen “Katie” Shoener had a childhood where her family described her as beautiful and vibrant, a leader with many friends.   Katie graduated from Penn State with a Bachelor’s Degree in Business, and attended Ohio State Fisher School of Business where she obtained her MBA.  She was a bright successful woman who also happened to live with mental illness, specifically Bipolar Disorder. 

Although it is not always as visible as physical illness, nearly 1 in 5 adults in the United States live with mental illness.  Despite living with Bipolar Disorder, Katie had the love and support of her friends and family beside her, and took medication as prescribed to her to help manage the symptoms of her illness.  Sadly, this type of illness can cause extreme mood swings that can affect a person’s ability to think clearly and cause major depressive episodes that can lead to suicide.  Katie tragically passed away by suicide at the age of 29.

Her family wrote a short and simple obituary that openly talked about Katie’s mental illness and suicide and called for an end to the stigma and discrimination that people who live with a mental illness experience.  Katie’s obituary went viral and was covered in news outlets around the world.  People from all over the world have left messages about how they can relate to her powerful story.  The message that Katie’s story is helping to spread is that people are not their illnesses.  People with Cancer are not defined by their disorder, as they are not looked at as Cancer.  Likewise, people with mental illness are not their mental illness.  People are not Bipolar or Schizophrenic.  Rather, they live with Bipolar, Schizophrenia, etc. 

In a Sirius XM Radio interview Katie’s father, Ed, who is a deacon in the Catholic Church, talked about how God can turn all things to the good.   Katie’s suffering is being turned to the good to help people who live with mental illness through Katie’s Place Clubhouse.  Katie’s Place Clubhouse will open its doors to assist all individuals living with mental illness, in providing hope and vocational opportunities while building meaningful relationships and connections.

To read more please visit https://www.thekatiefoundation.org/