Catherine Alexander

Beloved mother, grandmother, sister, aunt, and friend Cathrine Lee "Cathie" Alexander was born
on January 6th, 1953 to mother Betty Mae Atkins and father Arthur Atkins in Fresno, CA and
passed away suddenly on June 4th, 2024 at the age of 71.
She is preceded in death by her mother, father, and older brother, Art Atkins Jr., and is survived
in life by her younger sister, Terri Nelson, children, Cristi Capello and Brandon Rider,
grandchildren, Ryan, Alissa, Savannah, Addisyn, Kaylee, Mollie, Robert, Jacob, Emily, Misty,
and Lillian, and great-grandchildren, Chali, Chassity, Cathalina, Ashton, Kallie, Kooper, Skylar,
and one on the way, close friend and family member Annette, as well as many cousins and
extended family members whom she was close with.
Cathie spent many of the early years of her education in Fresno before attending Hanford High
School in Hanford, CA. While there, she was a majorette, spending time spinning her batons and
performing at football games where she would even light them on fire and throw them so high in
the air that you'd be amazed when she caught them. She graduated class of 1971, and soon after,
went to cosmetology school, obtained her license, and opened up a wig shop.
As a young woman, Cathie married her high school sweetheart and had her two children,
choosing to step away from the workforce in favor of raising them. After some time, she decided
to reenter the workforce, finding a love for accounting and payroll and spending the remainder of
her career working at Five Star Ranch and OH Kruse before her eventual retirement.
Throughout her life, Cathie loved many things. As a mother, she enjoyed hosting family
holidays, displaying her fun nature and gracious hospitality. As a young girl and continuing on in
her life, she enjoyed staying active by skating, water skiing, snow skiing, and country music line
dancing. She also loved to cook. She made many delicious things, but among her favorites were
her rice pilaf, chicken and dumplings, rice crispy treats, and homemade cinnamon rolls. She also
had an affinity for anything sweet, learning to bake a mean peach pie and making chocolate chip
cookies from scratch just to eat the dough before they were baked.
Two of her greatest passions in life were music and her love for God. As a musician, she played
piano, harp, and guitar. She sang, wrote, composed, and even produced her own music. As a
devoted Christian, God and family came before herself and she expected promises to be kept and
people to be honest. She even managed to combine these two passions at one point in her life by
using her beautiful voice to sing lead in a church worship band.
Cathie was kind and loving and there was never a time where she didn't greet you with a big,
beautiful smile and a long hug. She will forever be remembered for the legacy of love that she
leaves behind as she moves on to sing her beautiful songs for God and his angels.