Catherine Moise

Sumter, SC…Catherine Moise passed quietly and peacefully on November 5th, 2019 at her home from complications due to lung cancer just a few weeks shy of her 91st  birthday.  

“Tippy” or “Tip”, as she was widely known, was born in Stoneboro, PA on the family farm at the start of the Great Depression.   Her lifelong resilience, gratitude and endless creativity were formed in great part by her experience growing up in rural America during those difficult times.

Tip attended the Slater Elementary School in Stoneboro, a one room school house for 1st through 8th grades, where she had a perfect attendance record, neither late nor absent, for 5 of her 8 years, while also doing her part of the demanding work on the farm – milking cows, feeding the animals, driving teams of horses in the fields and other daily chores.   She then attended Stoneboro High School where she lettered as a varsity basketball cheerleader her junior and senior years.  Upon high school graduation she attended Franklin Commercial College and completed the 2-year course for her Secretarial Certificate in one year, class of 1947.    

Her first job out of college was with Westinghouse Electric Corporation in Sharon, PA, where she met a handsome young salesmen from Westinghouse, James D. “Jim” Moise of Sumter, SC.  Two years later, Tip moved to Washington DC to pursue her dream of moving to the nation’s capital and secured a job with the US Treasury Department.   Jim had also moved to DC and the two were re-connected in 1949 and married in 1950.   Children soon followed: Mary Catherine (Moise) Clark, James D. Moise, Jr and John V. Moise.   Jim’s career with Westinghouse took Tip and the family to several locations around the country including Pittsburgh (on 3 occasions), Boston, Philadelphia, Newport Beach and Vicksburg before retiring with Jim in Sumter in 1985.

Throughout it all Tip enjoyed the new experiences each move provided, made new friends and loved to travel and sightsee in the US and Europe.  She was very active in the family activities and community service serving as Girl Scout and Cub Scout leader for each of the children, booster club for school sports and The Women’s Federation of America serving local private nursing homes and homes for unwed mothers.  She was a self taught Wall Street investor and was frequently approached by family members and friends for insights and suggestions on how to mirror her investing success.  She also took a keen interest in the history and genealogy of both sides of the family and produced a series of books that documented the families with both photos and historical facts, preserving family history for generations.  Her other interests included various crafts, sewing, needlework, gardening, collecting antiques and furniture restoration.  But above all else she loved just being with her husband Jim, together for nearly 67 years.

Having previously lost her husband 2 1/2 years ago she is now survived by her three children as well as her five grandchildren: Lindsey Catherine Moise, John Thomas Moise, Hilary Claire Moise-Winslow, Lisa Louise Bagwell and Aaron James Moise as well as her two great grandchildren: Davis James Winslow and Cora Elizabeth Winslow.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her name to The Sumter County Museum, 122 North Washington Street, P.O. Box 1456, Sumter, SC 29151-1456
Phone 803-775-0908   http://www.sumtercountymuseum.org/

You may go to www.bullockfuneralhome.com and sign the family’s guest book.

The family has chosen Bullock Funeral Home for the arrangements.

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