“There are so many words I could use to describe Cathy. She was audacious, daring, bold and courageous. She was generous, straight forward, protective, hardworking, supportive and thrifty. She could strike up a conversation with a stranger and by the end you were a friend for life. Everyone that knew her always said she had a way of capturing your attention the moment she walked into a room
Cathy’s essence was that of a caretaker; she could always make others feel better. She believed in showing others they could achieve sobriety. If she could do, so could they. She was truthful to a fault, but not hurtful- just honest. There were times during her sobriety like others, you could see her struggle. She often spoke how very hard it was to remain sober and she described it as her body fighting against her. As one person described her: meeting Cathy at a woman’s meeting years ago, she watched her grow and spread her message of experience, strength and hope. What a beautiful woman; always with a smile & yes, an infectious laugh too. She was an Earth angel & now an angel in the heavens.
She valued her family – and her cat Buddy. She always wanted to make others happy by helping them – with just a smile, holding a door open or doing something really special for someone. She always wanted to graduate from college, get married and start her own family.
Cathy always showed kindness to others. She frequently got coffee at Marylou’s in Hanover with her Aunt. One day in getting coffee, there were three police officers in line with them. She said to her Aunt, “hey I want to buy them coffee this morning, but I only have five bucks, can I borrow money from you to get them coffee?” Her Aunt didn’t have enough either. They laughed but she was insistent she wanted to buy them coffee and was going to it one way or the other. Now as one of the police officers was listening to them, the officer said to Cathy, “I have an idea – you can by my coffee with your money and I’ll give you 10 dollars to buy the other two officers their coffee.” Cathy said “are you serious (laughing) are you sure – that’s a deal!”
The day she received her one-year medallion in AA, I was so proud of her and all that she achieved, knowing how hard she worked to achieve it. I was honored Cathy asked me to present her medallion and give a speech. It was a day all of her hopes and dreams were coming into place. It was that time, she knew anything was truly possible.
Cathy left a legacy of inspiring others to help those who need a hand, help, or support. She inspired me with her courage and hope, in achieving her dreams – her footprint.”
Written by Cynthia Wyman
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