Catherine Stainken Horn, born July 4, 1915 in Brooklyn New York, died May 13, 2007 in Lexington, Mass. 
By Marguerite E. Horn
Catherine Stainken Horn died, appropriately enough, on Mother’s Day, May 13, 2007. Her husband, Rev. Henry E. Horn, preceded her in death by only 3 months. Her ten children, twenty-one grandchildren, and ten great grandchildren carry on her tradition and memory.
Catherine’s life began in Brooklyn, where she was an accomplished pianist and trumpet player; she graduated from Bay Ridge High School with honors and entered Cornell, first in the Arts College, and then when her father lost his job during the Great Depression, in the College of Home Economics, where she graduated in a major of Foods and Nutrition, with honors, in 1936. She taught for a year at Oregon State University and received a Master’s degree at Cornell, writing her thesis on the potato.
In 1939 she married the Rev. Henry Eyster Horn, also a Cornelian, and together they served Immanuel Lutheran Church in Burholme, Philadelphia. Jean, Henry, and David were born and Catherine began her great career as mother and homemaker, all the while also being a minister’s wife, with all that entails. In 1943 she moved with her husband to Marion, Va., where he became President. Catherine taught Physiology; Marriage and the Family; and Organic Chemistry while the family grew in size: twin boys, Charles and William, and Marguerite were the Virginia contingent. Meanwhile Catherine was active in American Association of University Women, Marion civic groups, and Lutheran Church Women.
In 1949, the family moved to Augusta, Georgia, where Richard joined the brood. At this time, the Horn family began to become a magnet for neighborhood children, so Catherine began mothering not only her own crowd but all their friends, meanwhile becoming a Den Mother, taking children to Augusta Tigers games, and still keeping up her outside commitments.
In 1953, they moved yet again, to Cambridge, Mass., where most of their remaining years were to be spent. Eleanor, Michael and Andrew arrived in due time to round out the crowd at ten. Catherine found herself being a mother to a child in all the ages through a generation – there was a 19 year span in the family. And she became a friend and confidant to all of their friends. She also became more and more involved in civic activities: canvassing for the American Heart Association and the American Cancer Society, continuing her Den Mother duties for the Boy Scouts, and beginning to serve on various Community committees. She was active in Harvard Neighbors, on the Executive Board of the Cambridge YWCA, on the Executive Council of Cambridge Girl Scouts (followed by Patriots Trail and Mystick Side), the PTA’s of both Longfellow School and Cambridge High and Latin, and, of course, Women of the Church. She was invited to speak at many disparate groups on: marriage and the family, child-rearing, combining work and family, and women’s roles.
In 1994, the Helen Storrow Heritage Award, was presented to Catherine Horn “…for outstanding contributions to Girl Scouting which proved to be pivotal in the Growth and Strength of the Girl Scout Program in Cambridge. The board of directors of the Patriots’ Trail Girl Scout Council recognizes that these contributions provide a sense of History and serve as a continuing source of inspiration to Future Girl Scouts”
In retirement, Catherine accompanied Henry on many retirement travels and jobs: interim leadership, marriages and funerals; teaching engagements out of town for church and gown. He may have “retired” but she never did. She also delighted in being able to visit her children: in Germany, England, California, Arizona, Illinois, Canada, and points in between. Although in her last years, small strokes had slowed her down, she could still recite the Prologue to Chaucer’s Canterbury Tales, word for word, in Middle English.
Surviving are her ten children: Jean Swanson (Chicago, IL); Dr. Henry S. (Princeton, NJ); Dr. David J., (Columbus, OH); Charles M., (Westhampton, MA).; Rev. William M. (Allentown, PA) Marguerite E. (Albany, NY) ; Dr. Richard D. (Lexington, MA); Eleanor Grotzky (Munich, Germany); Michael J., (Watertown, MA); Dr. Andrew G. (Halifax, N.S.). There are twenty one grandchildren and 10 great grandchildren. The family can be reached at 60 Edenfield Ave., Watertown, MA 02472 (Michael Horn) or PO Box 657, Guilderland, NY 12084 (Marguerite Horn)
Memorial service to be held Saturday, May 19, 2007 at 2:00 P.M. at University Lutheran Church in Cambridge. The family will receive those who wish to offer condolences beginning at 1:00 P.M. in the Alumni/ae Room. There will be a small reception following the service in the Alumni/ae Room; the family would be grateful for offerings of food and drink.