Catherine Newton
On March 14, 2004, Catherine Louise Newton went to be with the Lord. She was the daughter of Adam John and Alice Jo Glazier, who preceded her in death.
She is survived by her devoted husband of 45 years, James (Jim) A. Newton; her three children, Cathy Jo Newton, Debra Ann Newton and James Adam Newton; her twin sister, Alice Joy Simons of Ashland, Ky.; her brother, John Adam Glazier of Iowa; and her sister, Michelle Gilmore of Missouri.
Catherine has been in the educational field for 44 years. She began teaching in Alaska, and then returned to her home state of Kentucky. She took a job in the Boyd County School System in 1962 as the first special education teacher in the county for students ages 4-18 and also an elementary teacher of grades 1-3. She was often heard saying with pride, that "she taught in the last classroom in the county to have a pot-bellied stove and the first with a television". In 1982, she began working as the JTPA coordinator. With this role, she helped students prepare for future jobs while in high school.
In 1992, she founded the Boyd County Youth Services Center, where she worked until her final days. Her only, though gigantic, responsibility was to "keep students in school, no matter what". She accomplished this by helping students with anything that could be affecting their education. She included helping students who may be suffering financially, offering drug prevention and rehabilitation opportunities, acquiring and distributing school supplies, etc., but her favorite was working with kids individually as a counselor and role model.
Through the Youth Services Center and other community agencies, she was able to bring over 1.6 million dollars into the Boyd County School System.
She was on the board of directors of CAReS (Community Assistance and Referral Services) and was on the Kentucky Commission on Community Services and Volunteerism.
In 2002, she received her proudest professional accomplishment, the 2001-2002 Harry J. Cowherd, M.D. Award for Center Excellence.
This award recognized the Boyd County Youth Services Center as an organization that excels in helping students and the community. She was the director of a nationally recognized and often modeled Youth Services Center.
She has helped many students individually and countless more in less than direct methods and for this she has been and always will be a highly respected educator.
In her free time, Catherine was an avid reader and a wonderful conversationalist. She also enjoyed crocheting and other crafts, cooking and her guilty pleasure of playing puzzle games on her Gameboy. She was proud to be a member of the Boyd County Breakfast Kiwanis. She was also a longtime member of the Ashland United Methodist Church.
Above all, Catherine Newton was a devoted family woman. She loved her family above all else in life. She was a loving and faithful wife, a dedicated sister, and an adoring and supportive mother. She always felt that family is the most important part of a person's life, and she instilled this same value in all of her loved ones. This day we have lost a wife, a mother, a sister, a friend and a valued member of the community.
Funeral services will be held at 2 p.m. Thursday, March 18, 2004, and visitation will be from 6 to 9 p.m. Wednesday, March 17, 2004, at Steen Funeral Home-Marshall Steen Chapel, 3409 13th St., Ashland.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Boyd County Youth Services Center, 12307 Midland Trail, Ashland, Ky. 41102.
