rUTH jEAN cATALANO

Ruth Jean Farrell Catalano, age 98, was peacefully welcomed into the arms of our Lord Jesus Christ on the evening of Sunday, April 23, 2017, at Buckner’s Calder Woods Retirement Home in Beaumont. She was born on July 27, 1918, in Buffalo, New York, to Jean Isabel Emig Farrell and Roy James Baxter Farrell.

By 1942 Ruth had become a Registered Nurse and was assisting the World War II effort on the Home Front by serving the civilian community while much of the local medical profession was preparing to deploy overseas.  In late 1943, she and her husband, Donald H. McCracken, United States Army Infantry, had a son but First Lieutenant McCracken was subsequently killed in action during the combat culminating in the Battle of the Bulge on November 28, 1944. Russell J. Catalano, M.D., also of Buffalo, New York, was a surgeon stationed with the Army’s 10th Evacuation Hospital in 1944 and 1945 and served in England, France, Belgium, and Germany. Following his return to the United States and after completing training as a Radiologist at Oak Ridge, Tennessee, he and Ruth were married and immediately relocated to the welcoming warmth and hospitality of Southeast Texas. They were soon blessed with a daughter, Roberta JoAnn Catalano Stephens, and a son, Russell Joseph “Joey” Catalano, Jr.  Robbie fought a long and truly heroic battle with cancer for years before ultimately being called to Heaven and the arms of our Lord Jesus on July 15, 2005.

Ruth’s devotion to her new home was soon apparent to all her soon numerous friends and acquaintances. Her commitment to helping others was clearly demonstrated by her years of service as a volunteer nurse in the old T.B. Hospital in Beaumont. She later became Director of Admissions for the then newly established Beaumont Neurological Hospital and then became the first president of Beaumont’s very own Some Other Place. She was also exceedingly effective as a Bridge player and maintained her Lifetime Masters Points until very late in life.

Ruth is survived by her sons, Donald H. “Don” McCracken of Bentwater in Montgomery County, Russell J. “Joey” Catalano of Beaumont, and her much loved grandson, Donald H. “D.J.” McCracken, III of Freeport, Florida. A memorial service for Mrs. Catalano will be 11:00 a.m. on Saturday, April 29, 2017, at Broussard’s, 2000 McFaddin Avenue in Beaumont, with a reception to follow at Broussard’s Centre, 1775 Calder Avenue, Beaumont.

In lieu of flowers, her family requests that memorial contributions be made to Some Other Place, P.O. Box 843, Beaumont, Texas 77704.