OBITUARY: Catherine Louise Stone

Catherine Louise Newcomb Stone, 81, passed away peacefully on Friday, September 26, 2025, at home in Nashville. Cathey is survived by her loving husband of 54 years, Herb; her granddaughters, Abby Stone and Sara Stone; and her sister, Barbara Faye Newcomb Sandridge. She is preceded in death by her son, Christian Erickson Stone; her parents, Robert and Opal Newcomb; and eight siblings: Aaron Newcomb, W.T. Newcomb, Jean Newcomb Bosserman, Lorene Newcomb Ledbetter, Estelle Newcomb Henderson, Eva Newcomb Barron, Alma Newcomb Rummage, and Alta Newcomb Chumbley.

Cathey grew up on a farm in Marshall County Tennessee, at Holt’s Corner near Chapel Hill. One of ten siblings, next to the youngest, a little slip of a girl. Her daddy a herdsman and milker on a dairy farm, and her mom, a loving homemaker. It was here she developed her lifelong love of animals, the land, and nature. As a child she had pets including Lambchop the lamb, Porky the pig, and Bossie the calf. She drove her daddy’s tractor in the hay field wearing her pinafore dress and ran around barefoot eating tomatoes off the vine with a saltshaker in her pocket.

After attending university for a year in Nashville, she returned home driving to Nashville in her yellow VW for her job. Eventually she moved to Nashville staying with her older sister, Estelle, for a while before venturing out on her own. Independent and hardworking, she earned her way, and with her sparkling eyes, big smile, and charisma she quickly made friends for life. Her friends called her Twiggy because of her petite size, and single in the big city, she loved to dance the weekends away at the popular music club, the Briarpatch where she was the crush of many a young lad.

Soon she began her long career in commercial insurance working for over fifty years with outstanding companies including Travelers, American International Group, Stewart-Smith, and Willis. Her ability to get the job done, her work ethic, and her loyalty earned her the reputation as an excellent business associate and fellow employee. She traveled the United States in her work and had a vast network of friends across the industry. She began her career as a receptionist and rose to the level of Assistant Vice President before retiring.

Cathey was a beautiful, free-spirited soul; kind, loving; and gentle, with a touch of fire when the situation called for it. Family was the highest priority for her, and she was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, daughter, sister, and aunt to our large extended family.

When her son, Christian, was born very prematurely, she took a two-year hiatus from working to mother him to full health. Cathey’s family, many friends, and work associates enjoyed her kindness and companionship. She never met a stranger, always made the effort to make others comfortable and fit in, and valued being a good mutual friend to all. She was a treasure to all who knew her, deeply loved her, and she is deeply missed by all.

Rest in peace sweet Cathey until we meet again!