Loetta Luan Corrigan

Loetta Luan Corrigan was born on June 3, 1943, to Emmett and Dorothy Corrigan, both of El Paso, Illinois. She attended school in El Paso until high school graduation in 1961, and then she attended St. Louis Webster College, majoring in Chemistry. Luan worked at Ralston Purina in St. Louis for two years, and then went back for her graduate degree to the University of Missouri in Columbia. While there, she switched to the School of Journalism, graduating in the late sixties to become a science writer, taking a job with the American Pharmaceutical Association in Washington DC, finally heading the editorial staff. Luan considered herself lucky to be working in the nation’s capital at a time when so many great issues were being debated.
In the early eighties, Luan returned to El Paso in order to care for her widowed mother, and soon after accepted a position with textbook publisher, Glencoe McGraw-Hill as a health editor in Peoria, IL and then Atlanta, GA, until 1989. She and long-time friend, and life partner, Kathryn Stromberger formerly of Eureka, IL then worked successfully together as independent book consultants and publishers until their retirement.
Luan and Kathryn enjoyed traveling, mostly road trips all over the US and also very much enjoyed England. Luan’s Grandmother was from England, and Luan and Kathryn made a dream come true for Luan’s mother by taking her to England for the first time when she was 85 years young. Luan and Kathryn married at their first opportunity on October 3, 2008, in San Marcos, CA, an event both considered the most important event of their lives.
Luan’s passions included reading, gardening, traveling, cooking, cats, birds, and knitting. Luan always made cookies for all the family at Christmas and continued the tradition of Grandma’s special jello salad. All great-great nieces and nephews have special knitted booties to be fought over. Her friends enjoy scarves and Afghans, not to mention lists of favorite books and authors. Luan was the best and the brightest, always helping without expecting acknowledgement. Always concerned with ethical questions, she has been a beloved friend and mentor to all who knew her.
Luan is preceded in death by her parents, Emmett and Dorothy, her brother Robert Corrigan and her niece Leigh Hanselman, both formerly of Springfield. She is survived by her spouse, Kathryn Stromberger Norcross, GA, her sister-in-law, Betty Corrigan, plus nieces Candace Powers and Caroline Fitzsimmons all of Chatham, IL, and nephew, Michael Corrigan Arkansas, as well as Julie Mangold Canton, GA, Allison DuBois Scottsdale AZ special cousins, Mary Kay Hingst Santa Ana, CA and Kathy Irish Ford City PA; Mike Irish Mt Airy MD. She is also mourned by loving family, nieces, nephews, and friends throughout the U.S.
Arrangements are private, but in lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Melanoma Research.

The University of Texas
MD Anderson Cancer Center
Melanoma research
Development office T 713-792-3450
Unit 705
P.O. Box 301439
Houston, Texas 77230-1439

Cremation is being accorded and online condolences can be made at: www.csog.com
Private services will be held in Elpaso Illinois.
Obituary written by close and special friend Cinda Thompson
Thanks to the women of Pruitt Home Hospice, and to Sean Fagan of Cremation Society of Georgia