Two Wisconsin men. One loses his daughter to cancer, the other his wife. Both decide to preserve their loved ones’ names in worthy causes. But both daughter and wife were named Kathy, and suddenly fighting cancer takes a back seat to fighting each other.

Dick Vogel opened Kathy’s House after the death of his daughter. A while later, Ron Komas opened The Kathy House. Vogel contacted Komas and asked him to drop the name. Komas renamed his hospice “The Kathy Country House.” Vogel sued.

“I don’t see any conflict,” Komas said, pointing out that his operation is for dying people, while Vogel’s is for recovering people. Still, Vogel wanted Komas to give up either “Kathy” or “House.” Or maybe use “The Kathy Komas House.” Komas didn’t want to, but was somehow swayed after seeing how their story read in a local newspaper. Komas went with “The Kathy Hospice” and the lawsuit was dropped. :

» Scott Saxon