Catherine (Moore) Sedore ’67

(Deceased 09/29/2002)

A remembrance by Barbara (Ellingson) Petersen

My junior and senior year roommate and fellow music major, Cathy died at age 57 of pancreatic cancer, probably related to the diabetes she’d suffered for several years. In some senses, she had a tragic life; not married until age 28, she was widowed in little more than a year, when her husband, Don Sedore, was killed on his way to work (his car stalled on a railroad track). Her older sister, a school teacher with whom she later shared a house, died way too young of cancer. Cathy never pursued her music professionally, but worked at a day job that allowed her time and energy to participate in a fine church choir, bell choir, and the Flint Festival Choir, which performed with the Flint Symphony Orchestra.

We saw each other periodically when one of these choirs came to NYC to perform, and I became aware of her struggle with diabetes. After our 35th Carleton reunion, which I was trying to talk her into attending, I sent her a packet of materials and souvenirs from our fun days on campus and around town. Subsequently, her younger sister, Christie (also a Carleton alum) was kind enough to write to me during Cathy’s last days and again after her funeral.  She was feeling bad in July 2002, had the usual tests and delays in diagnosis, and eventually was found to have pancreatic cancer, from which she died only a few months later, on September 29. I was able to speak with her 5 days before that and realized how bravely she’d accepted her fate. (I’m sure I could never have such grace and peace under similar circumstances!) Cathy’s funeral service was held at her home church, the First Presbyterian Church in Flint, with interment following at McBride Cemetery, McBride, MI.   

I look back at some of our sporadic correspondence and realize that for her too the memories of Carleton were strong. At Christmas 2001, for instance, she was singing in Maurice Duruflé’s “Requiem” and recalled how she had first learned the piece in 1967at Carleton. (We shared the job of chorus librarians, first for the Woodwards and later for Bill Wells.) Although she was able to get to campus on a trip or two with her sisters, I’m sorry she never attended one of our reunions.

    -by Barbara (Ellingson) Petersen