Catherine "Caye" M. Poe 1942 - 2025

On April 11, 2025, Catherine "Caye" May Poe passed away, with John, her beloved husband of nearly 23 years, by her side at their home in Dayton, Oregon.

Caye, the fourth of seven children, was born September 15, 1942, to Edmond and Catherine (Baisch) Currier in Newberg, Oregon. Caye attended Newberg schools until she moved to San Diego with her then-husband, Micheal. Caye and Micheal had two children while in California during Micheal's Navy career. In 1964, the family moved to McMinnville, Oregon, where Caye remained until their divorce in 1999.

In the '80s, Caye was hired for Smurfit Newsprint (SP Newsprint), where she worked her way up to purchasing manager. In 1991, she received her Bachelor of Science from Linfield College and then went on to get her Master of Business Administration from George Fox University in 1996. She retired in 2001 with dozens of lifelong friendships from her time at the mill.

In 2002, Caye and John met in a bicycling group in Portland. Naturally, Caye was chattering away about her travels and when John overheard her, he became intrigued and introduced himself. They were united in love at a commitment ceremony on November 13, 2004. On January 20th, 2010, they were legally married.

Caye, always having had an affection for adventure, traveled to many of the United States, the Cook Islands, Czechoslovakia, and Romania. Together, Caye and John traveled much more extensively in the last 25 years, visiting India, Italy, Greece, Egypt, Kenya, Colombia, Tanzania, and Mexico, to name a few. Some of the trips required them to teach; others were to bring sewing machines to vulnerable villages to teach women to sew for commerce or personal hygiene; and some were purely for brave wonder.

Caye would try... and keep doing anything. She was a ski instructor at Timberline, rode motorcycles with friends from the Trask Mountain ISDE; she became a cyclist and successfully completed Reach the Beach and the Portland Bridge Ride and, in addition to competing in countless race walks, she participated in Hood to Coast and completed the Portland Marathon once and the Portland Half-Marathon twice.

Caye loved people. She could strike up a friendly conversation with anyone, anywhere. John shares that when Caye would see someone walking their dog, Caye, whether walking or driving, would stop to thank the canine for walking their human. She was fond of sewing; she could repair, alter or make any garment, including doll dresses and bags. The majority of her needlework was showcased in her quilting skills; she loved assembling patchwork.

Caye believed actions spoke louder than words and if something was truly important, you would find a way. She showed her love by giving her time to what was most important to her: family dinners, cooking with granddaughters, supporting careers and causes of her children and grandchildren, picking up trash on the highway, passing on her skills and knowledge to family, friends, and others, and caring for the love of her life, John.

Caye is survived by her husband, John Francis; son, Shannon Poe (Lisa) of Mariposa, California; daughter, Patti King of La Pine, Oregon; stepson, Eric Francis (Sonja) of Houston; and siblings, Patricia, Jacqueline, Virginia, and Roger. Caye is also survived by grandchildren, Jessica (Jay), and Kat (Troy); and three great-grandchildren. Caye was predeceased by her former husband, Micheal Poe, on April 10, 2025; her parents; sister, Mary; and brother, William.

Please join us for Caye Poe's "Send Off" at 2 p.m. Saturday, April 26, 2025, at the Pioneer Evangelical Church in Dayton, Oregon. A dessert buffet of Caye's favorite treats, cookies, and cupcakes will be served following the ceremony.