Local comic book and art collector Kat Wheatley has passed away

Joel Pollack, founder of Big Planet Comics in Bethesda posted yesterday on Facebook:

Kat was one of our first customers at Big Planet Comics and had subscriber box #34. She was an avid art collector, focusing on Catwoman art by J.H. Williams. Rest in peace, Kat!

I'm sure we were in the store together at the same time at some point, but I don't remember ever meeting her. (I was box #45, for the record). 

Here's her obituary and funeral information:

Katrin Gabriella Wheatley Obituary

Katrin Wheatley, of Rockville, MD, passed away on Thursday, June 19, 2025 after a long valiant battle against Ovarian Cancer. She is mourned by her loving mother Gertraud de Thier, a host of relatives in Germany and friends from around the world. Katrin was born in Washington, D.C, and grew up in Bethesda, MD. After graduation from the University of Bridgeport in Connecticut with a degree in Graphic Design, she returned to Maryland. Her professional career was spent in the financial field.

She enjoyed to travel, but her great love belonged to the arts, being a talented artist herself. Visiting Renaissance fairs and Comic Conventions brought her in contact with some of the best- and well-known artists. Her collection of comic art is the envy of her numerous friends. She enjoyed her mother's history books, trips to archaeology museums in Berlin and Munich, and mountain climbing in the Alps with her uncle, and special times with aunt. Getting together with her friends in Virginia once a month was always a special treat.

A Celebration of Life will be held at Pumphrey's Colonial Funeral Home, 300 W. Montgomery Avenue, Rockville, MD on Thursday, June 26, 2025 at 12 noon. (Service livestreaming information found below) Interment will be private.

Memorial contributions may be made to the Humane World for Animals (formerly Humane Society) Humane World for Animals, 1255 23rd Street, NW, Suite 450, Washington, DC 20037 (https://www.humaneworld.org/en)

Celebration of Life

Thursday, June 26, 2025

12:00PM

Robert A. Pumphrey Funeral Homes, Inc. - Rockville

300 W. Montgomery Avenue

Rockville, MD 20850

6/25 update:

I reached out via Facebook to John Judy, a longtime customer / friend of the store, for any comments or updates. He said, "The only thing I think it’s missing is an acknowledgement that Kat was proudly and openly gay.  I think, especially during Pride Month, that Kat would have wanted it known.

I can’t say that Kat and I were super-tight since I had no idea she had been ill. We were Facebook friends and had known each other for decades through Big Planet. We fell into that category of friends who could go years without seeing each other and pick up right where we left off. She was a delightful person and I hope she knew how many people felt that way about her."