Catherine Joyce Paul

This is a living Document so it'll change daily.

This was written by Catherine in her last weeks.

————Catherine Joyce Paul was native Oregon born in McMinnville Oregon while traveling with her parents Patricia and Robert Paul, she was a citizen and resident of Roseburg at the time of her passing.  Growing up with parents Patricia (deceased) and James (deceased) Helmers clan with siblings Chris, Sarah, Jason (deceased) in a community and household of camping, political activism, and the day to day of growing to young adulthood.   

As her life progressed to the high desert of central Oregon hiking, skiing, bicycling in Bend Oregon as it was becoming “Bend”. Mothering arrived along with home keeping growing and harvesting and putting up gardens. And, like her mother before her laundry could be seen hanging most every day.

Eastern Oregon beaconed, a sheltered place to pour the generosity of mothering wisdom into a fierce parent.  Engaging yoga practice, reading many different genres, entertains friends and family, yoga practice engaged the yet deeply private person.  Contra dancing was a source of cultural joy, the opportunity to pass down history to the next generation - once again in a leadership role. Catherine enjoyed traveling some with or without child, cooking obligatory school bake sale goods, a diverse circle of friends.

With growth and presence a move to Southern Oregon, Roseburg. What a life to occasionally pick blue berries along the Umpqua River, still in wonder of the geography seen each day.—————

As Paul Havery said “here is the rest of the story”.

Here (well be the rest of her story) seen through the eyes and ears of her son.

Catherine was born in McMinnville Oregon on September 10th, 1953, to Robert (bob) Paul and Patricia were in route to Eugene from Newburg visiting Catherine’s grandparents, they might of made it to Eugene before Catherine was born if I-5 existed at the time. Catherine was born and was out the door of the hospital in less than 24 hours. Catherine & her brother (Chris), grow up with their father, dad, and confidant (stepfather) Jim Helmers(deceased) and with that came a sister (Sarah) & brother (Jason(deceased)). Catherine grow up in Eugene, OR, in the 60s and 70s and lived there tell she was in her 20s in that time she was active in hiking with Jim to Waldo Lake, and many other places in the Cascades. Learning to cook with Pat (Patricia). In a different time, she once went on a date night to the U of O to watch the protests/riot’s happening on the college campus and that was a date night. When Catherine was in her late teens early 20’s her and friends went skiing up at Willamette and having a good time got a great idea that they wanted to see the sunrise. They hopped in the car and drove to the Oregon coast and got their pre-dawn and was saddened to see the sun shining bright of the mountains and not of the ocean.

When she moved to Central Oregon in her VW Bug (with a boxer motor) and could climb a tree with studs on. She skier, hiker and all-around outdoors person living life in Bend, OR with a population less then 12,000 people in it. Catherine did some work in Sun River when it was just an airport, refueling and loading retardant planes for wildland in the late 70’s.

More to come

Nathan