Collins, Catherine C.

Catherine C. (Whyte) Collins - 70, of Marshfield and former longtime resident of Waltham and Watertown passed away peacefully at home on the morning of May 29, 2020 following a lengthy and courageous battle with pancreatic cancer.  She was the beloved wife of the late James F. Collins, who predeceased her in 2011.

Cathy was born in Brighton, MA on July 21, 1949, the daughter of the late John P. and Mary (Bowes) Whyte.  The youngest of 7 children, she grew up in Watertown and was a graduate of Watertown High School.  Cathy was employed for many years as an administrative assistant for the US Army Corps of Engineers and US Fish and Wildlife. Upon her retirement, she truly enjoyed her work with the Waltham Public School Dept. as a special needs classroom aide at South Middle School and later as a media aide at the McDevitt Middle School.

Cathy loved spending summers in Marshfield’s Green Harbor, where she vacationed as a child in her family’s summer home.   The tradition carried on as she and Jim rented a house each year with her sisters and all of their kids, resulting in countless family memories and stories that will span generations.  Cathy was a sun goddess and would always kick off any family vacation by sitting in her beach chair to “get some color,” which more often than not resulted in an awful sunburn.  This never deterred her from getting a great tan for the summer.

She loved to teach people, entertain and dance, so naturally a short-lived career as a line dance instructor was inevitable.  She bought herself a boombox and cowgirl boots and taught for several years.  She was an avid knitter, never said no to a nice cup of tea and loved to cook for her family, often arriving to holiday parties with arms full of trays of her famous lasagna or cookies.

She never hesitated to volunteer her time to help others and was a member of the Waltham Centennial Scholarship Foundation for many years.  She assisted in collecting recipes for their annual fundraising and to her credit, not one member of her family is lacking a “What’s Cooking in Waltham” cookbook. She was so proud to have been invited to a special event where she was honored by the committee with a Certificate of Appreciation in 2019.

In the fall of 2016, Cathy’s lifelong dream of taking permanent residence in Marshfield became a reality and she moved into her home in Green Harbor.  She was thrilled to call Marshfield her home and became active in the senior center and in the knitting group in her parish.  The people she met there would become very important, close friends to her and she treasured the relationships she shared with them.

Of all her life’s endeavors, becoming a grandmother encompassed some of the proudest moments in life.  She adored her grandchildren more than anything in the world and they truly gave her joy in her final days despite her illness.

Cathy was the devoted mother of James F. Collins, Jr. and his wife Sara of Scituate and Sean Collins and Sabra Towne of Marshfield.  Cherished grandmother of Johnathan, Alice and Makayla; and Scott and Isabelle. 

Loving sister of John P. Whyte, Jr. of PA (late wife Marie), Betty Ferren (husband Tom) of CA and the late Mary Sullivan (husband Don), Margaret “Peggy” Kearsley (late husband Wayne), Joan Roy (late partner Bill Zebal) and William Whyte (wife Mary Ellen.) sister-in-law in law of Ronald Collins of GA. She was survived by many nieces, nephews and cousins.