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Obituary for Catherine M. Lutz
Celemorial to be held on Sunday, August 8th, 2021. If you would like further details of this event, please email your complete contact information to Shari Lutz at sharilutz@comcast.net.
It is with profound sadness and a great sense of loss that we announce the passing of Catherine Marguerite Chouzenoux Lutz on Monday, June 8, 2020. Cathie valiantly fought breast cancer for over 20 years before finally surrendering to this relentless disease.
Cathie was born to Jacqueline (Glatt) and Rene in Bordeaux, France on March 21, 1943. She emigrated with her family to the United States after World War II, living in Chicago where her father worked as an architect.
In the late 1950s the family moved again, this time to Denver where Cathie would live the rest of her life. The family settled in Littleton where Cathie would graduate from Bear Creek High School in 1961. There were only 76 in her graduating class and she remained close with them until her death. She then attended the University of Northern Colorado from which she received her B.A. and teaching certificate in 1966. She obtained her M.A., also from UNC in 1991.
Cathie joined the Jefferson County school district as a French teacher. Over the course of her career she taught French to thousands of students and spent the largest portion of her teaching career at Columbine High School, where she was head of the language department at the time of her retirement in 1999. Sadly, Catherine was at the school during what has now become known as the Columbine shootings. Several of her students, some with whom she had just returned from France, were killed. Though she attended all the memorials, she rarely spoke about that day.
Over the course of her career, Cathie's demand for excellence in her classroom gained her the respect and admiration of hundreds of colleagues and thousands of students. Following her retirement, Cathie continued to work for an additional twenty years, primarily in the Cherry Creek school district serving as a substitute teacher up until the closure of schools in March due to the COVID-19 outbreak. Her attendance at a Cherry Creek High School event or football games was recognized with many “Hi Madam Lutz!” “Remember me?” She was a rock star, and still in touch with former students at the time of her death.
Cathie's passion for excellence, eye for beauty and exquisite sense of style and taste imbued every aspect of her life. She was an accomplished chef, a master decorator and an expert gardener. Her home inside and out expressed the loving care and attention she put into everything she did and everyone she loved.
Most significantly, Cathie was a passionate supporter of many organizations concerned with the care of animals. She was a supporter of The Max Fund, Best Friends, The Denver Animal Shelter, The Cat Care Society and Freedom Service Dogs of America among others. She was a devoted and loving pet owner. Rarely were there less than three adopted dogs in her home, each lovingly cared and nurtured over the course of their lives. From her example, her children and grandchildren learned to stop their car, wherever they were, whenever they saw a stray or lost pet.
After a brief previous marriage, Cathie married Richard Lutz in 1969. They were married for 49 years before his passing in 2018. Their life together was filled with many good friends with whom they loved to spend time. Most significantly, Cathie stood with her beloved Richard at the center of a large and adoring family. She loved nothing more than gathering with them around her kitchen table, or on her patio, to enjoy a good glass of wine surrounded by those who she loved and who loved her in return.
Cathie brought people together, quietly, skillfully, beautifully. She was the center of her family and of her communities including the school system, garden clubs, her neighborhoods, the antique community in Denver and more.
She will be sorely missed by her loving and adoring family: her children, Barry (Debbie) Lutz, Shari Lutz (Marshall Aster), her grandchildren, Adam (Emma) Lutz, Jeremy Lutz, Emily Lutz (Gaby Cielak), Aaron Bloom, Isaac Bloom, Heath Aster (Rachel Berns), Lauren (Joshua) Blumenthal and great-granddaughter Ruby.
Due to COVID, her celemorial (celebration + memorial) will be held at a future date. If you would like to be notified of that event, please email your complete contact information to Shari Lutz at sharilutz@comcast.net.
Donations in Catherine's memory can be made to The Breast Cancer Research Foundation, Denver Hospice, Freedom Service Dogs of America or Max Fund
