PORTLAND — Katherine M. Brooks, 69, died July 9, with her sister by her side.

Known as “Kappy” to her closest friends and loved ones, she was born in Phoenix, Ariz., on July 7, 1944, the daughter of Wendell and Katherine Brooks.

Although born in Arizona, Brooks lived in Massachusetts and Maine her entire life. As a child and teenager she traveled the Orient with her family, as her father worked for the U.S. State Department. She enjoyed learning various languages, including Cantonese, Thai, and Korean, and also used that talent to teach English to college students during her travels. As an adult she also worked for the State Department in Laos.

Brooks had a passion for music, and a magnificent, operatic voice. She was skilled with both the spoken and written word, and had a witty sense of humor. But her deep love and respect for all animals, great and small, was decidedly her most defining characteristic.

She was a fun-loving, kind-hearted, compassionate, trustworthy and intelligent woman, with an unsurpassed sense of empathy towards her fellow man. 

She is survived by her sister, Wendie A. Geiger; her nieces and nephew, Roberta B. Geiger-Berry, Katherine L., David T. English and Jaelynn L. Berry; her uncle and aunt, Hanns and Kip Gruemer; and cousins Ruth Presti, Annamarie Gruemer, Kelly Bookman and Chuck and Gina Mistark.

Services will be private. Burial will take place at the Rural Cemetery in Southborough, Mass., at a later date.