Catherine Sherman Schneider, 103, died peacefully on Thursday evening, January 22, in Petersham MA, where she lived with daughter Sara Deponte and husband Fabio.

She is also survived by son John Schneider and wife Karen and daughter Susan Doty and husband James; grandchildren Andrew Schneider and wife Pamela, Christopher Schneider, Catherine Badger and husband Jamie, Nicole Deponte, Matthew Deponte, Daniel Doty and wife Kim, Thomas Doty, David Doty and wife Kristen; and great-grandchildren Madeline and Catherine Schneider, Jacob and Benjamin Badger, Jackson Doty, and Mason Doty.

She was predeceased by her husband of 67 years, Francis Mathias Schneider; twin brother John; son Francis, who died in infancy; and great-grandson Andrew Doty.

Born in Gloversville NY on July 19, 1911, she lived in Woodbridge CT for almost 60 years. She moved with her husband to Ashlar Village in Wallingford CT in 1998 — and spent the last year and a half of her life in Petersham MA.

She spent her summers on Caroga Lake NY, where first her parents and then she and her husband had a cottage — and later, when her children were older, on Indian Neck in Branford CT where the family gathered.

She attended Gloversville High School and the Knox School in Cooperstown NY, and received a BS from Maryland College for Women. Her first job after college was as a secretary for a law firm in Gloversville NY.

For 11 years, from 1950 to 1961, she cared for her mother Florence, who suffered from a severe stroke, and her father John, who had diabetes, at her home in Woodbridge.

Over her lifetime, she was extremely active in a wide range of community activities and organizations. In high school she was president of her sorority, president of the drama society and a cheerleader. In college she was president of the freshman class, the sophomore class, and the student body her junior and senior years. Later as a young woman she organized a club for young women who worked in the glove factories.

After her marriage, she organized an amateur theatre group at the New Haven YWCA, was president of the Lady Lions of New Haven, and secretary of the New Haven Wives of Rotarians. From 1967 to 1987, she managed the Bargain Box, a thrift shop that raised money for the Association for Retarded Citizens, which honored her as "Woman of the Year" in 1978. She was an active, longtime member of the First Church in Woodbridge. After moving to Ashlar Village she quickly became an active and effective volunteer.

A memorial service will be held at 3.30 p.m. on Saturday, January 31, at Ashlar Village in Wallingford. Burial at Milfordside Cemetery in Woodbridge will be private. Contributions in lieu of flowers can be made to the Masonic Charity Foundation, PO Box 70, Wallingford CT 06492. To sign the online guestbook please visit hawleylincolnmemorial.com.