Catherine Ann (Woodard) Bowling-Dean

Catherine Ann Woodard Bowling-Dean, 66, of Stanton, Tennessee, passed away on January 29, 2021.

Catherine was born on November 25, 1954, in Shreveport, Louisiana, to the late Dudley Woodard and Mary Ann Davidson Woodard. Crowned Miss Shreveport, she competed in the Miss Louisiana USA pageant and modeled extensively in her teens and early twenties, before moving to the Memphis area and raising her family.

Catherine was self-made. She was a fabulous chef and the proud owner of Me and My Tea Room Catering, which she built from scratch and operated for over twenty years until her death. She and her beloved team have catered thousands of weddings and events in the Mid-South, to wide acclaim. She traveled the world and visited many exotic places, taking in cultures and broadening her culinary knowledge. She would return home from these adventures and incorporate dishes she had tasted across the globe into her catering offerings.

Catherine was an avid gardener and burgeoning beekeeper. She derived great joy from her many projects.

Catherine was preceded in death by her parents as well as her siblings, Deborah Woodard, Mary Woodard Smith (“Lulu”), and Dudley Woodard (“Eli”).

She is survived by her adoring husband, adventure partner, and love of her life, Dennis Dean; her children, Maggie Bowling, Matthew Bowling, and Daniel (Rebecca) Bowling; her step-daughter, Aimee Dean (Kyle) Watkins and granddaughter, Harper Grace Watkins; her close friends whom she called family, Jeanette and Charles Holmes, Sherita Holmes, Tireca Turner, and Travis Nelson; several nieces and nephews; special family friend Pamela Thompson; and the entire Me and My Tea Room Catering family.

Catherine will be remembered for her extraordinarily charitable nature. Accordingly, the family requests that expressions of sympathy take the form of donations, in Catherine’s name, to the International Children’s Fund, www.icfaid.org/gift-catalog .

A private, family-only service will be held on Monday, February 1, 2021. A full celebration of Catherine’s life will take place at a later date, when friends and family can gather safely.

"Not all of us can do great things. But we can do small things with great love." – Mother Teresa