Funeral service:
– Tuesday 21st April, 12.30pm
– Saint John the Baptist Church, Cayton
Family Burial:
– Saint Martin’s Church Seamer
Wake:
– Ye Olde Forge Valley Pub, Ayton, following the service for refreshments
Flowers and donations:
Family have requested that instead of flowers if you could bring means of donation to be collected at the church with a cause still to be decided.
Please feel free to share photos and bring plenty of stories for afterwards as we look to celebrate Catherine’s life. No dress code, comfortable above all else.
If possible please indicate intention to attend funeral and/or wake so that family can prepare appropriate orders of service and refreshments to accommodate all. You can add to the comments area or email [email protected] and it will be passed on to the family.
Below are memories of Cath written by former colleagues Richard Scott and Anna Mack
Memories of Cath – Richard Scott
Throughout her career Cath was an outstanding teacher of Modern Languages. From key stage 3 to “A” level and latterly the IB she inspired countless students of French and German. Always meticulous and thorough, intellectual rigour was a staple of her teaching alongside her wonderful dry sense of humour and passionate concern for her students.
Cath’s academic prowess was greatly admired by colleagues and students alike. She graduated from Durham University in 1980 achieving a first class honours degree in Modern Languages. A little known fact, which only emerged when she retired from Scarborough College in 2018, is that shortly after graduating she received the famous “tap on the shoulder” an invitation to apply for a position in the British Secret Service. However chose to turn down the offer in favour of (as Cath put it) “the more challenging option of teaching Modern Languages”.
Shortly after she began working at Scarborough College she became Head of Holbeck House, a position which she held for most of the 1980s. Cath’s competitive streak was always at the forefront of her work and many students were encouraged to pursue areas well out of their comfort zones in music and sport. In the 1990s up to the end of her career she was a full Pastoral head, a position in which her concern for the well being and care of students was always a priority.
Cath was renowned for her meticulous organization and this, alongside her ability to inspire other teachers, was very much in evidence when she became Head of Modern Languages.
Under Isobel Nixon’s headship Cath was invited to reform the College’s PSHE programme of study and then be in charge of rolling it out through the tutorial system. This was by no means a simple undertaking, as the existing PSHE provision was almost non-existent at that time. Furthermore, staff enthusiasm for PSHE was equally sparse. However, once again she applied her meticulous approach and leadership skills and within a year a full, comprehensive, well-resourced programme of study from Key Stage 3 to 5 was in place with the full support of the tutorial staff.
I worked alongside Cath for most of my own career at Scarborough College and I came to greatly admire her as a colleague and greatly valued her friendship, especially in the final decade leading up to 2018 when we retired at the same time. I fondly remember the 2012 History Trip to Berlin which was led by Connie Brock, Cath and myself. Connie brought youthful enthusiasm and energy to the trip, my role entailed carrying a huge rucksack stuffed with consent forms and policy documents and commenting on the Third Reich at opportune moments. Cath, however brought tremendous organization to the venture, her dry wit and, alongside Connie charmed and negotiated on our collective behalf in eloquent and fluent German.
Memories of Cath – Anna Mack
If the hallmark of a truly talented teacher is the legacy they leave in the minds of those they taught, then Cath has left a treasure trove of memories and experiences to mine and remember.
For so many of her former pupils Mrs Lucas will be synonymous with the Junior Languages trips to Les Carroz in Haute- Savoie, France and Boppard in Germany, trips which she organised with meticulous precision and attention to detail for many years.
I was fortunate enough to be asked by Cath to accompany these trips which heralded the start of the College summer holidays and became a personal highlight of the College year.
As I write, I am looking at photographs taken in Annecy where Adam is a babe in arms and Emily an excited toddler. Then, there are views from the cable cars on Mt Blanc, ( the ones which juddered to a halt halfway down in a thunderstorm!!) photos of castles, wineries, towns and parks and river trips on the Rhine.
The excursions and activities which Cath organised for every visit were remarkable, providing opportunities for all to experience and absorb the history, culture and language of our hosts. Cath placed great importance on learning on these trips and had the ability to make it a time of collective fun and enjoyment.
She was prepared for every eventuality and dealt with any problem, major or minor with expert ease and flair and as group leader was second to none. There are so many former pupils and members of staff who will remember Mrs Lucas’s Junior Language trips with huge affection and respect. They are my abiding memory of Cath, together with her consummate professionalism and dedicated teaching of the languages she loved. She was a highly respected and valued colleague and her commitment and dedication to Scarborough College are immeasurable, as so many have testified here.
Thank you for the memories Cath, they will live on in my thoughts and prayers and may you Rest in Peace.
