Catherine M Olson
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Catherine's obituary
Catherine (Kay) M. Olson (Ryan)
A Life Well-Lived
Catherine (Kay) M. Olson (Ryan) passed away peacefully at 96 years of age at Pond Home in Wrentham, MA on December 13, 2023. Born on March 28, 1927 in Greenwich, CT, she was the middle daughter of three born to Irish immigrant parents, Laurence and Catherine (McKeon) Ryan. She was predeceased by her husband of 52 years, Robert P. Olson.
Active and alert up to the end, she lived life to the fullest and was never afraid to try something new.
Her family settled in Newport, RI during the Depression to live near relatives when Kay was very young. They lived across the street from St. Mary’s Church and a mile from the beaches. This location provided her the opportunity to excel academically and as an athlete. She graduated second in the St. Catherine Academy Class of 1944. At St. Catherine Academy, Kay received an outstanding education and a solid religious grounding. Many of her classmates remained good friends over the decades. She was a strong swimmer and good dancer and led an active life up until very recently.
When her father’s carpentry jobs became increasingly sporadic during the Depression, Kay went out and got a job as a candy girl at Newport’s Movie Theater to keep money coming into the household. Many mornings breakfast consisted of a cup of tea and a piece of toast during those years. Later, during World War II, she found employment in a munitions factory inserting tracer rounds into anti-aircraft ammunition belts. She quickly secured jobs in the factory for her two sisters and, eventually, her father. She and her sisters would do their homework after school on the ferry transporting them to their jobs in the munitions factory.
Both her sisters took holy orders as nuns with the Sisters of Saint Joseph. Kay accepted a secretarial position at the Portsmouth Priory, Portsmouth, RI and worked there until the day she met her future husband just back from the war on the bus going home from work.
She married Robert P. Olson on June 17, 1950 and raised three sons in Westwood, MA where she and her husband lived for 40 years. Never one to stand still, she volunteered as cub scout den mother, taught catechism at St. Margaret Mary’s church and worked for numerous charities and made regular donations to help the poor and the sick.
Kay reentered the workforce in the mid-1960’s when it was unusual to see a woman working in business. She worked for the famous Manpower Temporary Agency and, later, her job in the Westwood School System put her at the forefront of the computer revolution working with Digital Equipment Corporation’s minicomputers. She spent the last decade of her career working as a paralegal. At the age of 93, Kay got an iPhone and enjoyed talking and texting with family and friends.
The Roman Catholic faith was the bulwark of her life. She studied for and received lay Third Orders as a Sister of St. Francis of Assisi and held a succession of leadership positions in the organization. She made pilgrimages to holy shrines and religious sites in Portugal, Israel, Ireland, Mexico, France, Italy and Bosnia and Herzegovina. She also traveled extensively in the United States.
She leaves her sons: Chrisopher Olson (Anna Olson) of Manhattan and Neenah, WI; Steven Olson MD of Colebrook, NH and Robert Olson (Denise Olson) of West Newbury, MA. Four grandchildren: Paul Olson (Yiwen Zhang) of Manhattan; Sarah Olson (Atli Guðjónsson) of Reykjavik, Iceland; Kristen Olson of Boston, MA and Helen Olson of West Newbury, MA., and two great grandchildren: Freya and Anders Olson, both of Manhattan.
A special mass to celebrate a life well-lived is scheduled for St. Mary’s Church, Wrentham, MA on January 6, 2024 at 10:30 am. A private graveside ceremony will be held at the Wrentham Center Cemetery immediately after the mass.
In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to the Pine Street Inn (Pine Street Inn | Ways to Give) or any organization helping the homeless.
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