Catherine Elizabeth Chafin of Auburn, Maine, died unexpectedly on May 14, 2025, at Central Maine Medical Center in Lewiston. She was 57 years old.

Catherine, known to her family and friends as Cathy, was born on Sept. 8, 1967, in Phoenix, Ariz. She is survived by her mother, Darla Dawn Stimpson Chafin, of Augusta, Maine, and her brother, Clifford (Jill) Chafin, of Chapel Hill, N.C., as well as her niece, Poppy, and her nephew, Oscar. She was predeceased by her father, Earl Stene Chafin.

Cathy developed severe disabilities at an early age, but she lived her life with courage, determination, and giggles. At the age of 8, she moved into the Pineland Center in New Gloucester, Maine, where she was happy and well-cared-for until it closed in 1996. After living in several group homes, she finally found a true home in Auburn, operated by John F. Murphy Homes, where she was very happy.

Cathy loved music of all kinds, as long as it was cheerful. She liked people who smiled, and enjoyed making friends with the clerks at Shaw’s. Her mother recalls Cathy singing the first few notes of a song and smiling at her as a way to ask her to sing the rest. “We conversed without words,” her mother said.

To honor Cathy’s memory, her mother asks that you smile at the next child or adult you see who feels out of place in this world. You can also make a donation to the John F. Murphy homes, or any organization serving this purpose.

If you wish, please join us for an online celebration of her life on Friday, August 8, at 12pm ET. 

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