Catherine Eileen (Dowd) O’Driscoll, born August 18, 1942, passed away Friday November 19, 2021 in South San Francisco, California. Born in Manhattan and raised in the Bronx, Cathy was the daughter of Michael and Ann Dowd, and sister to Joan, Mary, Ann, Margaret, Eileen, Michael, and Jimmy.
She met her husband of 54 years, Peter, at a dance hall in the Bronx, Elegantly Dance, while he was on leave from the Army in 1966. They kept in touch, and when he ended up in San Francisco later that year, she went out to visit, planning to only stay for a year. They were married in San Francisco in 1967. She always regretted giving away her sweaters when she left New York for San Francisco, thinking that all of California was sunny and warm.
She worked for the phone company when she first landed in San Francisco. After her sons were older, she worked as a yard duty lady at a local elementary school, and as a teacher’s assistant at a preschool in South San Francisco.
Cathy is the mother of four sons: Kevin (Kari), Peter, Stephen (Rebecca), and Eamon; and the grandmother of three grandsons, Ryan, Collin, and Aidan.
She was a good Mom, wife, and grandmother, and is already missed. She will be remembered for her dry sense of humor, her organization skills, and listening to the cooking shows she enjoyed on her radio in the kitchen. She enjoyed walking around the neighborhood for many years with her neighbors, as well as going to listen to music and dance at Nick’s Rockaway in Pacifica and the Irish Cultural Center in San Francisco.
A special thanks to those at Seniors at Home, especially Julia, who helped to take care of Mom for the past few years. Also, thank you to Jeannie and Diane at 1st Choice Hospice for making Mom comfortable in her final days.
