Dawn Louise Kilheffer - Obituary

awn Louise Kilheffer, 81, passed away on Monday evening, February 3, 2025, after a brief battle with cancer. She died at the home she shared with her husband William “Bill” Galebach in Edgewater, MD, holding her daughter’s hand and listening to choral classics. Born on March 6, 1943 in Washington, DC to the late Lewis Edgar and Clara Augusta Kilheffer (nee Papenfus), Dawn graduated from high school in Arlington VA and attended Radford University. She eventually ran off to NYC to start her amazing adventures and was in the City for the blackout of 1965. Returning to the DC-MD-VA area in the late 60’s, Dawn earned her bachelor’s degree from the University of Maryland while working full-time as a grants administrator at Prince George’s Community College and raising a family of 5 children. She worked into her 70’s, retiring from her position as an administrative manager in the Center for Imaging Science at Johns Hopkins University in 2015. Dawn loved music, poetry, animals, traveling, ice cream and spending time with family and friends. A member of her church choirs dating back to her early teen years and a member of the Annapolis Chorale since 1989, she knew the words to just about every song! Dawn was a member of the “Tiara Queens” Book Club and cherished those long-time friendships and the incredible trips they took together. She was drawn to the water and loved walking on the beach and boating. Dawn was a vibrant, caring, welcoming and eternally positive person who genuinely loved people and fellowship. She could light up any room and she made the world a better place. In addition to her parents, Dawn was preceded in death by her beloved son, Craig Ryan Billings and step-son, Brent Schulze. She is survived by her husband, Bill; her brother, Ed Kilheffer (Wendy); her daughter, Dawn-Marie Bey (Chris Cotropia); her stepchildren, Amy Crone (Tom), Sarah and Mark Schulze and her grandchildren, Oakley and Clara Cotropia, Caeden and Zoe Crone, Anah and Payton Billings and Tayjah Daquila. Friends are invited to celebrate Dawn’s life at the Kalas Funeral Home & Crematory, 2973 Solomons Island Rd., Edgewater, MD on Wednesday, February 12 from 2 pm until her funeral service begins at 4 pm. Memorial contributions may be made to the Alzheimer’s Association (alz.org) or the American Cancer Society (cancer.org). Condolences may be made by visiting the Memories link on this page.