Catherine A. "Katie" Morton

Although she loved traveling, Catherine Katie Morton was happiest when surrounded by the family she treasured. She was a supportive wife, nurturing mother, and doting grandmother who was always her grandchildrens number one fan. Holidays were such treasured times in Katies home because no matter what was being celebrated, she had a way of making each special occasion unique. She was blessed to share more than 40 years with the love of her life with whom she embraced both the joys and the sorrows of life. A true gift to those around her, life will never be the same for those who were blessed to know and love such a remarkable woman. During a year in which President Roosevelt opened the second phase of his New Deal calling for better housing, social security, and farm assistance, 1935 was a year for hope in things to come. This was the year that Benny Goodman introduced the world to Swing and Parker Brothers gave the world the game of Monopoly. It was also during this year that Harry and Agnes (Grady) Troup welcomed the birth of their daughter, Catherine, on February 26th. Born in Anderson, Indiana, Catherine was the third of four children in her family including older siblings Harry and George and her younger sister Leandra. Her father worked for Delco for 44 years while her mother was a nurse. Katie, as she was most often called, was born at home during the middle of a bad snowstorm. When the doctor got in his car to come to the Troup home for the delivery, his car wouldnt start so he picked up a ride with a man in a milk truck. For the rest of her life, the joke was that Katie was delivered by a milk truck! When Katie was a young girl, she and her siblings went to the store to get some candy on one occasion. They all got licorice and when her brothers ate all of theirs, Katie was not about to give them any of hers. In retaliation, her brothers stuffed her licorice with hot pepper seeds and throughout the rest of her life, Katie never went near licorice again! There was plenty of time for family unity, too, as Katie and her siblings enjoyed listening to The Green Hornet and The Lone Ranger on the radio. During her formative years, Katie faced more health struggles than most young children do. She came down with rheumatic fever and although penicillin was widely used during the forties, all of our nations supply was being sent to the troops overseas during WWII. Also as a young girl, Katies appendix burst and sent her to the hospital where she remained for a month. As if these experiences werent enough, Katie was badly burned on the front of her body when her apron caught on fire while she was cooking. She was only nine years old at the time. Great changes were in store for Katie after she graduated from Anderson High School in Indiana. In 1953 when Katie was 19 years old, she came to Muskegon, Michigan, to visit with some friends of the family. She was drawn to the area and decided that if she could find a job, Muskegon would become her home. As fate would have it, she did find a job and remained in Muskegon. While Katie was working as an accountant at Maihofer, Moore, and DeLong, she met the man with whom she would share an abiding love. His name was Thomas Morton and he was one of the CPAs at work. After dating for a time, the couple was united in marriage at First Congregational Church in Muskegon on November 17, 1967. Together they were blessed with four children: Susan, Thomas, Deborah, and Pamela. Throughout her life, Katie was rarely one to be idle and enjoyed many things. She was so proud of being the first female president of the Muskegon Chapter of the N.A.A. Katie loved traveling. They traveled quite a bit as a family, attending CPA conventions in Chicago, Hawaii, and Seattle just to name a few of the places they visited. Katie liked seeing the country, although her idea of camping was staying at the Holiday Inn! Over the years, Katie saw all 50 states and went on 17 cruises. Once while on a cruise, she hit the jackpot in the casino. The next day while she was in Ireland, she bought gifts for all of her children and had them shipped home. Katie was an excellent bowler, enjoyed ceramics, and liked playing cards and board games. She also enjoyed watching television, especially The Price Is Right, reading, and visiting casinos. For many years, Katie was a member of First Congregational Church UCC. It was easy to see that Katie treasured her family. Nothing could have made her happier than being blessed with 11 grandchildren, and they certainly kept her busy, too. Katie and Thomas were active in the lives of their grandchildren as they never missed an activity including baseball and hockey games or anything else that came up. Later in life, Katie was blessed with one great-grandchild. Katie and Thomas loved the holidays and made them such a special time for their children and grandchildren. Katie was an excellent cook who made the best apple pie and when everyone came home for Christmas and Thanksgiving, their family always enjoyed playing Trivial Pursuit together. Later in life, Katie continued to embrace each day she was given. She retired from the Muskegon Area Intermediate School District after 17 years of dedicated service. When Katie and Thomas traveled to Arizona in 1996, they stayed for the entire month of February. The next winter, that one month trip became four and in 2007, they moved to Arizona permanently. Life was always a delight when Catherine Morton was around as she had such a special way about her. She was loving and generous, compassionate and tender. Katie lived life to the fullest each day and never shied away from letting her family know how much they were loved in ways both great and small. She will be dearly missed and warmly remembered by those she leaves behind. Catherine A. Morton died on Thursday, September 2, 2010 in Arizona. Katies family includes her husband, Thomas; children, Susan (Kirk) Gorbach of Muskegon, Thomas (Patty) Morton of Muskegon, Deborah (Scott Vandonkelaar) Smith of Ravenna, Pamela (David) Appel of Grand Haven; 11 grandchildren; 1 great-grandchild; brothers-in-law, James (Wilma) Morton of Muskegon, Floyd Elmore of Anderson, IN; many nieces & nephews. Katie was preceded in death by her parents & siblings, Harry, George & Leandra. A service will be held on Saturday, September 11, 2010, 10:00 a.m. at the Clock Chapel - Muskegon with Rev. Tim VanderHaar officiating. Interment at Sunrise Memorial Gardens. Visit with Katies family and friends on Friday, 6-8 p.m. at Clock Life Story Funeral Home Muskegon location Muskegon, MI. Please visit www.lifestorynet.com where you can leave a memory or make a memorial donation to First Congregational Church.