Kristine Sutherland is an actress best known for her frequent recurring role as Buffy Summers mother Joyce Summers on the television show Buffy The Vampire Slayer , where she appeared in every season, and in her role as the mother in Honey, I Shrunk the Kids.
She was born Kristine Young, and changed her name because she was often confused with another similarly named actress. The last name Sutherland was after her cat, whom she named Donald after Donald Sutherland, who, coincidentally, had a role in the original Buffy the Vampire Slayer film, Joss Whedons first attempt to bring Buffy to audiences. Hence she is not related to Donald Sutherland or his son Kiefer.
Source: Wikipedia