GREENE – Catherine MacDonald Wood, 87, a longtime resident of Greene, entered the presence of the Lord God Almighty on Sunday, Dec. 6. She died early Sunday at Clover Living Center & Long Term Care following a brief illness.

She was born in Glasgow, Scotland, Sept. 29, 1917, the daughter of John and Jessie Black MacDonald. She and her family of four sisters and a brother immigrated to New York City in March of 1928, settling in Brooklyn.

She was educated in the grammar schools of Scotland and Brooklyn, N.Y., and graduated from the Girls Commercial High School, with her twin sister, Mary, in 1936.

She went on to further her education at the National Bible Institute of New York, N.Y., graduating in 1942 with a degree in Biblical Studies.

She then moved to Maine under the New England Fellowship to teach to public students under the release time program of the day. Her itinerary included many schools throughout Androscoggin County.

She first met Gilbert Parker Wood in 1942 at The Baptist Church of Greene. When she had to return to Brooklyn in 1943 to care for her family’s needs, the couple corresponded frequently by letter. During this time, she worked as a private secretary to the Rev. Dr. George Arms, pastor of the Bedford Central Presbyterian Church.

A long-distance romance developed, and on Sept. 22, 1945, Catherine and Gilbert were married in Brooklyn, N.Y. The couple established permanent residence in Greene, eventually purchasing the old Rackley/Philbrook place on Quaker Ridge Road from Margaret Philbrook in 1956 where they raised three sons.

They lived there until the summer 2002 when they moved into The Meadows in Greene on Route 202, selling their home to their grandson, the late Ross Wood and their granddaughter-in-law, Sasha.

She worked as a homemaker for many years and was employed as a part-time custodian along with Gilbert at the Greene Central School in the early sixties. She took a sales associate postion with W.T. Grant Department Store in Lewiston in the mid-1960s and then secured a job as a remedial reading teacher for Lewiston School system in 1967, where she taught at Pettengill, Montello and McMahon schools for 10 years until 1977 when she retired.

She was a civic-minded woman, being very active in her community over the years. She was always an active member of the Baptist Church of Greene where she served faithfully in a variety of capacities, including teaching Sunday School and serving as Sunday School superintendent, and as a member of the choir for many years. She also supported and held postions in the The Association of American Baptist Churches of Maine.

She, for several years, was a dedicated assistant to her husband at The Sawyer Memorial Foundation as greeter.

During the 1950s, she was a member of the Women’s Christian Temperance Union (WCTU). In earlier years, she was a member of Civil Air Defense Volunteers in Greene, during the early years of the cold war, having served as an enemy aircraft spotter.

She had also served as a ballot clerk for many years in the town of Greene.

Survivors include her husband of 59 years of Greene; three sons, John C. Wood and his wife, Lindy, of Turner, Alan G. Wood and his wife, Sheila, of Greene, and Mark D. Wood and his wife, Margit, of Poland; one sister, Mrs. Isabella Ganley, of Taneytown, Md. and Homestead, Fla.; three grandchildren, Ian Wood and his wife, Ellen, of Greene, Jennifer Springer and her husband, John, of Greene, and Christopher Wood of Greenville, N.C.; a granddaughter-in-law, Mrs. Sasha Wood of Greene; five great-grandchildren, Parker, Madelyn and Blake Springer, Jared and Aili Wood, all of Greene; and several nieces and nephews.

She was predeceased by three sisters; Mrs. Jessie Mackie, Mrs. Christina Leyden, and Catherine’s twin sister, Mrs. Mary Widness; one brother, John “Jack” C. MacDonald; and a grandson, Ross Wood.

The entire Wood family would like to thank the doctors and staff at Central Maine Medical Center and the staff of Clover Living Center for the professional and compassionate care given to Mrs. Wood during her illness.

Copy the Story Link