Kathlyn Hammes "Kax" Mowbray entered into eternal life Feb. 10, 2017. She was born into this world Oct. 31, 1926, in La Crosse, Wis., the first child of Dorothy and Romy Hammes. During her first year of life, her parents relocated to Kankakee, Ill., where her father opened the local Ford dealership. The family grew with the births of sister, Romayne and brother, Jerry. Kax's formative years were spent in the Kankakee River Valley. She attended St. Patrick's Grade School and graduated from St. Patrick's High School in 1944. Kax attended Webster College in St. Louis, and graduated in 1948 with a bachelor's degree in English and Fine Art. In 1940, her father acquired the Ford dealership in South Bend, Ind. Her family purchased a home on Diamond Lake in nearby Cassopolis, Mich., where Kax spent time during the summer months. In the late summer of 1946 while attending an event at St. Mary's College in Notre Dame, Ind., Kax met John C. Mowbray from Bradford, Ill., who had just enrolled at Notre Dame Law School after having served as a major in the U.S. Army Air Corps during World War II. Upon completion of their respective degrees, Kax and John were married Oct. 15, 1949, at St. Teresa Catholic Church in Kankakee. Although both were members of well-established Illinois families where they had a promising future, Kax and John decided to strike out on their own and move to the small southern Nevada town of Las Vegas, arriving in November 1949. John, who had passed the 1949 Nevada Bar exam, went to work in the Clark County District Attorney's Office while Kax became involved as a volunteer with a number of southern Nevada entities including the St. Rose de Lima Hospital in Henderson. Kax's and John's first son John was born in 1951, their second, Romy, in 1952, their third, Jerry, in 1953 and their fourth, Terrence, in 1957. Kax's parents came to visit her and John in Las Vegas in January 1950. Her father, who was an entrepreneur, realized the vast growth potential in the Las Vegas Valley and acquired numerous pieces of real estate. One such 40 acre piece was developed into the Marycrest housing subdivision. Kax and John, as well as other families, built their homes in Marycrest, which at the time was on the southern outskirts of Las Vegas' residential development. When Romy Hammes learned that there was no Catholic high school in southern Nevada, he, along with his wife, Dorothy, and daughter, Kax, as well as Bishop Robert Dwyer of the Diocese of Reno and Father John Brown, Provincial Superior of the Clerics of St. Viator of Arlington Heights, Ill. partnered to develop and build to operational completion Bishop Gorman High School which opened in 1954 on Maryland Parkway on six acres of land in the Marycrest subdivision which was donated to the Diocese by the Hammes family. Life in the Marycrest housing subdivision in the 1950s, 60s and 70s was comprised of a number of young growing families consisting of dozens of children which included the Mowbray, Tiberti, Von Tobel, Foley, Hawkins, Pinjuv, Johnson, Faccento, Butera, Grilliette, Greenspun and Barger kids. Kax was always available to help the kids solve their problems, develop their hopes and achieve their dreams. After Kax's children left the family homestead to further their pursuits, she was always available to provide advice on all aspects of life. She was an avid researcher of family history and enjoyed time spent reviewing subjects related to architecture. Her life was blessed with the birth of her grandchildren and she spent countless hours with them as they developed through adolescence into adulthood. Kax's husband, John, preceded her in death; as did her parents, Dorothy and Romy; sister, Romayne; and sons, Romy and Terrence. She is survived by her brother, Jerry Hammes of South Bend, Ind.; her sons, John of Las Vegas and Jerry of Reno and Las Vegas; as well as grandchildren John Terrence "J.T." Mowbray, George "Geordie" Mowbray, John Tyler Mowbray and Angelica Kathlyn Mowbray. Kax's viewing will be 6-8 p.m. Thursday, Feb. 23, at Davis Memorial Park Mausoleum, 6200 S. Eastern Ave. Funeral Mass will be at 10 a.m. Friday, Feb. 24, at St. Viator Catholic Church, 2461 E. Flamingo Road, Las Vegas. Burial following in the Viatorian Section of Davis Memorial Park, 6200 S. Eastern Ave. There will be a post burial reception 1-3 p.m. at the Village Pub, 2301 E. Sunset Road., Las Vegas.