Obituary of Catherine E. Bear

March 6, 1941- February 24, 2025

Catherine Evelyn Bear (Trosset) of Duxbury, Massachusetts passed away peacefully at her home surrounded by her family on February 24, 2025 at the age of 83.

Catherine will be forever loved and missed by her husband of 56 years, John, and their children, Alison (Eric) Hipp of Hull, MA, and Caroline (Jared) Carver of Brookline, MA; her five grandchildren, Connor, Teddy, Evelyn, Jonah and Ryder; and her sister; Virginié Bergen, along with her nieces, Melissa Bergen and Jeannine Cerabone; and many loving family members and friends. She is predeceased by her dear parents, Evelyn and Edward (Ellis) Trosset and her brother, Edward (Ned) Trosset. 

Born in Queens Village, NY, Catherine and Virginié grew up in a joyful home filled with art, music, hard work, traditions and laughter. This is where she learned the importance of family. Catherine attended Andrew Jackson High School and graduated from Brown Business School.  

Catherine’s career began as a secretary at Modern Talking Picture Service Inc. in New York City and she went on to work for the Vanderbilt Webb family in Switzerland. This is where Catherine’s love of travel began. Shortly after, she accepted a position at British Airways. With a travel discount that people only dream of, she began to travel the world. 

British Airways brought Catherine the love of her life. She met her husband, John, when he was running for a flight and held the plane for him. This began a wonderful journey of laughter, love and adventure. John and Cathy would go on to travel and make friends all over the world. 

They settled in New York and welcomed their first child, Alison, followed four years later by a second daughter, Caroline. They fashioned an idyllic life in Pleasantville, New York. It included many pets, porch sleepovers, family holidays, East Marion summers, and many cherished friends. Their next adventure beckoned and in the late 80’s, they moved the family to London, England. Catherine took on the role of settling her family, making their apartment a home and buying as much Spode china as her cabinets could hold while once again making more lifelong friends.

Their next move brought them back to the US, landing them in the seaside town of Duxbury, MA where they continued to build their beautiful life together. Catherine’s most precious moments were spent with her family and close friends, playing bridge, gardening, cross stitching, discussing books, hosting dinner parties, volunteering and caring for her mother. They enjoyed their many years in the Duxbury Yacht Club continuing to make more dear friends.

Catherine was creative, adventurous, loving and strong. She loved to laugh and was always entertained by John’s stories and (sometimes bad) jokes. She was an accomplished artisan whether she was creating an award winning cross stitch or making an intricate Nantucket basket. Being a mother and a nonna were her most important roles. She took them seriously, fashioning traditions and close relationships that her family cherishes. She was Alison and Caroline’s biggest cheerleader and never failed to express her pride and love for them in all their endeavors.  She was close with her grandchildren and was known for giving them cups of chocolate chips before bed and waking them with waffles and ice cream. She was loving and caring to the end. 

Visitation will be held from 4:00 to 8:00PM at the Shepherd Funeral Home, 216 Main St. Kingston, MA on Thursday, March 6th. Funeral services will be held at Holy Family Church in Duxbury, MA on Friday, March 7th at 10:00AM. 

In lieu of flowers, we ask for donations to the American Heart Association at www.heart.org/donatenow or the Alzheimer's Association at www.alz.org.