Catharine Marie (Girvin) Owen died peacefully on Tuesday, March 31, 2026, surrounded by her children in Blandon, PA. Born in Philadelphia, PA, Cathy was one of two children born to Robert and Dorothy (Deppen) Girvin. She was predeceased by her identical twin sister, Anne Gabriel (Girvin) Farris, who passed away in 2017.

An avid reader and learner, Cathy received her Bachelor’s Degree in Library Science from Albright College and went on to obtain her Master’s Degree in Library Science from Drexel Institute of Technology (now Drexel University). She put her education to good use as a librarian at the Free Library of Philadelphia and the Reading Public Library. Later, once she had a family, she continued her work as a librarian at Lincoln Elementary School in Emmaus, PA and at Andrew Maier Elementary School in Blandon, PA.

Cathy met the love of her life, Robert D. Owen (Bob), while she was working in Philadelphia and he was completing his Bachelor’s Degree in Business Administration at The Wharton School at University of Pennsylvania. They went on to get married in 1958 and to raise four children together. Their house was always full of laughter and learning and no shortage of books to read. They were inseparable until Bob’s death in 2022.

Cathy is predeceased by a son, Kenneth Owen, who died in 1998, and is survived by three daughters-Elizabeth (Daniel) Joy, Blandon, PA, Susan (Michael) Hoffman, Blandon, PA and Jennifer (Douglas) Meyers, Clemmons, NC. In addition, she is survived by six grandchildren-Caityln (Matthew) DeLong, Lauren Sangrey, Kelly (Brendon) Stern, Meghan Meyers, Rachel Meyers and Leah Meyers, and five great grandchildren-Aubrey, William, Lucas, Logan and Jaxon.

A joint graveside service for both Catharine and Robert Owen will be held at St. Ann’s Calvary Cemetery in Emmaus, PA at 10:00 am on Saturday, August 1, 2026. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to The Reading Public Library Foundation. https://readingpubliclibrary.org/donate/