Catherine Lamourie

Catherine LaMourie (Vezina) was born March 24, 1933 in Manistique, Michigan. A daughter of the Upper Peninsula, she was proud of her Irish and French heritage and having grown up in a small town where everyone knew everyone and even the family pet was referred to by first and last name. Born second of four (4) and the oldest of three (3) girls, Catherine was the daughter of Mary Eileen (McLaughlin) and Paul Westcott Vezina. She remained in close contact with her sisters Patricia and Frances all her life, as well as her older brother Paul, who died in 1977.
After graduating from Manistique High School, where she played piano and sang in the glee club, Catherine attended Rosary College, then an all-women’s college in River Forest, Illinois. She graduated with a bachelor of arts, developing an interest in social science and Spanish. Catherine was an active member of Pi Gamma Mu and Delta Sigma Delta, the national social science and language honor societies. While at Rosary, she made many lifelong friends.
Before her marriage to Lawrence L. LaMourie in 1960, Catherine taught elementary grades in a two-room schoolhouse located in what is now Fayette Historic State Park on the Big Bay de Noc on the southern shores of Lake Michigan. Once married, she and Lawrence moved with their oldest son Matthew from Sault Ste. Marie in the Upper Peninsula to Allen Park, in the downriver Detroit area. Catherine considered her career to be that of a homemaker and mother, and in her leisure time took pleasure in running, and with her husband, traveling and collecting antiques. Catherine loved to swim and enjoyed the outdoors. She was an avid walker and was known by many people in her town through this passion, which she pursued for many years. She also became an ardent and talented gardener.
Catherine held her Roman Catholic faith deeply and was a woman of committed dedication. As a devoted communicant at St. Frances Cabrini parish for almost 52 years, she frequently attended daily mass and kept weekly vigil with her husband Lawrence in a chapel devoted to the Virgin Mary. Lawrence died in 2012. Catherine is survived by her sons, Matthew J. LaMourie (Mary) of Yarmouth, ME; Paul C. LaMourie (Christine) of Naperville, IL; Patrick T. LaMourie (Dawn) of Detroit, MI; and her daughter, Eileen T. LaMourie of New York, NY. She is also survived by five grandchildren, Matthew J. LaMourie II, Jonathan H. LaMourie, Samuel K. LaMourie, Jacob P. LaMourie, and Daniel F. LaMourie. Visitation Friday 1 - 8 pm at Weise Funeral Home, 7210 Park Ave., Allen Park, MI 48101, (313) 382-1150. Scripture Service Friday 5:30 pm. In State Saturday 9:30 am until time of Mass 10 am at St. Frances Cabrini Church, 9000 Laurence (at Wick), Allen Park.