Catherine Higbee Mize, 67, of Statesville, N.C., passed away on Saturday, June 21, 2025, at the Gordon Hospice House after a period of declining health.

Catherine was born August 18, 1957, in Rowan County, N.C., to the late Dale Strohe Higbee and Jane Nash Higbee. Catherine attended the Cannon School in Concord, and after a move to Columbia, S.C., she attended Hammond School, graduating in 1975.

Catherine attended the University of Georgia for two years and then USC Columbia, where she earned a degree in biology. Later, she earned an associate degree in horticulture at a technical college. After moving back to Salisbury and after some work in horticulture, she earned an associate degree in computer programming at Rowan-Cabarrus Community College and worked in the IT field from then on, including at Burlington Industries and then Sarstedt in Newton, where she worked for many years.

Catherine loved pets, especially cats, and collected not only cats themselves but also cat representations of all types. She loved plants and filled her home and her landscape with a wide diversity of plants, including a large collection of orchids. She was a very active member of the Catawba Valley Orchid Society. Catherine also enjoyed classical music, opera, dance, and antique furnishings.

In addition to her parents, Catherine was preceded in death by her husband, David Kirk Mize, and her sister, Sidney Lee Higbee.

Those left to remember Catherine fondly are her brother, Richard Nash Creel; her brother-in-law, Robert (Bobby) Mize (Elizabeth); nephews, Sam Mize (May) and Charlie Mize (Luci); and niece, Lily Mize (Joel), as well as several cousins in New England.

There will be no formal service, but the family will receive friends at Troutman Funeral Home on Saturday, June 28, between 5 and 6:30 p.m.

If any would like to make a memorial contribution, the family recommends a medical charity dedicated to research into Alzheimer’s disease or diabetes.

Troutman Funeral Home is serving the Mize family.