The daughter of Karl and Hedwig Hering, Catherine attended Simmons College and the New England Conservatory of Music. In 1946, she married Carl Peter Jensen of Poulsbo, Washington, and moved to Seattle.
Beyond her dedication to raising her son and daughter, one of her primary avocations was music. In her youth, she performed at the Handel & Haydn Society of Boston and the American Youth, New England, Thalia, and Seattle Opera Companies. After her children left home, she attended the University of Washington and earned her Bachelor of Arts in Music and Education in 1975. She taught music in the Seattle Public Schools from 1978 to 1991 and provided private voice and piano lessons from 1982 to 2013. She was an adjudicator at the Washington State Federation of Music Clubs Festival, a guest artist at the Music and Art Foundation, and active in Mu Phi Epsilon, and she attended the Music Educators National Conference. She was nominated for a Washington State Award of Excellence in Education and in 2010 was recognized as an Honored Member of the Seattle Music Teachers Association.
Another important interest was her church. As a member of the University Lutheran Church, she sang in the church choir and as a soloist for 32 years, led its Junior Choir, helped in its nursery, taught Vacation Bible School, helped run the church’s Luther League for 7th, 8th and 9th graders, and helped found its Come Doubles Club. More recently, she was a member of Messiah Lutheran Church.
Her highly active lifestyle was evident through her involvement in her son’s Boy Scouts and daughter’s Camp Fire Girls activities, the Municipal League of King County, the Women’s University Club, Garden Club, tournament bridge, golfing, and the Theta Xi Mother’s Club. After moving to the Mirabella retirement community in South Lake Union, she was a founding member of the Mirabella Movie Club and was involved in the Mirabella Book Club.
Throughout her life, she was deeply devoted to her family. Her husband of 51 years passed away in 1997; she is survived by her son Paul, daughter-in-law Barbara, daughter Linda, and son-in-law Tim.
A memorial service will be held at 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, December 1st, 2018, at Messiah Lutheran Church, 7050 35th Avenue N.E., Seattle. Memorials may be made to the Arthritis Foundation.
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