Kathryn Weishar Dalzell

Kathie Weishar came to Benedictine College in the 1970s as a young music student. She loved playing the piano, but she also enjoyed participating in the choir, which she says would not have happened at any other college. Her experience at Benedictine College and her connection with S. Joachim Holthaus, OSB, her favorite music professor, greatly enriched her love of music.

Kathie has shared her love of Benedictine with her husband, Rick Dalzell, former Chief Information Officer and Senior Vice President of Amazon.com. The two met shortly after Kathie completed high school and they stayed in touch through the college years, Kathie at Benedictine and Rick at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point. Kathie graduated from Benedictine College in 1980 with a Bachelor of Music Degree. Rick was a year ahead in college and they were married shortly after Kathie finished her Master’s Degree in Piano Performance from the Conservatory at the University of Missouri-Kansas City.

Kathie has a special place in her heart for the music program at Benedictine College. She and her husband funded the Dalzell Music Scholarship in 2006, giving students interested in music majors the opportunity to participate in something they truly love.

Later, the couple saw another need and quickly took action to fill it. When they realized the age of the pianos in the Music Department, the Dalzells became interested in the All-Steinway Program. Kathie and Rick even went to Steinway’s New York City manufacturing facility with Dr. Ruth Krusemark to personally select some of the pianos. Their donation of nearly a million dollars made Benedictine’s All-Steinway School designation possible.