Catherine (MacCarthy) McLenithan

QUEENSBURY – Catherine (MacCarthy) McLenithan, 78, of Eagan Road, passed away peacefully and privately on Sunday, April 28, 2024, following a courageous battle with cancer.

Born November 2, 1945, in Yonkers, Katie was the daughter of the late John and Antoinette (Dell’Accio) MacCarthy.

Katie was a graduate of Pine Bush Central School in Orange County. Following high school, she attended Albany Business College and graduated with an Associate Degree in Accounting.

She married Richard McLenithan on July 23, 1967, at the Church of The Infant Savior in Pine Bush, New York.

Katie began her longtime accounting career in the early 1970’s working for DeSantis Enterprise as the assistant office manager. This was Katie’s first exposure to working in a large office environment with the responsibility of managing and staffing multiple Howard Johnson restaurants throughout the greater Glens Falls/Queensbury area. It also included a restaurant in Herkimer, New York. Katie considered this a great training job which prepared her for future opportunities.

Prior to working for DeSantis Enterprise, Katie worked many jobs that gave her the confidence, experience, and knowledge she needed to be successful. She was so proud of herself for starting out with a two-year degree in accounting. She took advantage of every learning opportunity that came her way. She also figured out that the only way to get a raise was to move on to a new job. 

Katie’s final job was working for Rick McClenning at Premier Dairy Service, LLC in Argyle. When she joined Premier Dairy, Katie was the accounting manager for Rick and dealt directly with the accounting firm that prepared the company’s income taxes and yearly final statements. When the business sold to the Swedish company, Delaval Inc. in 2014, Katie’s expertise with the company’s accounting was recognized and she continued to work for them until retirement. When Katie retired, she was the head bookkeeper and proud of it. Katie also found time to help her husband with his law practice.

She loved her profession and never considered her jobs as work. To her, they were her hobbies. She also loved to cook. Katie could look at a recipe once and create a dish without looking at the ingredients again. She loved to travel. Katie and Dick travelled extensively in their lifetime throughout the United States and Europe often accompanied by other couples. After retirement, Katie also traveled extensively with her sister.

Katie was the matriarch of her family. She always made sure the holidays were perfect with beautiful decorations, lots of food, and making memories to last a lifetime.

Even though Katie was a very private woman, she was part of a group of women she had hired when she was at Howard Johnson. In 1989 Rayna Henry approached Katie about meeting once a month for dinner. The ladies, known as the “Ho-Jo Girls” who were there at the start were Rayna Henry, the late Julie Malan, Kathy Durkee, Katie Mclenithan, Ann LaRose, and Paula Pendergast. Several years later, they were joined by friends Connie Rawlins and Susan Holbrook. The women are still meeting after all those years.

In addition to her parents, Katie is predeceased by her brother, John MacCarthy.

She is survived by her husband, Richard E. McLenithan of Queensbury; her children, Sarah McLenithan (Nick Ignazio) of Glens Falls, and Daniel (Yaniris) McLenithan of Lebanon New Hampshire; her grandchildren, Jeremiah Fenton, Anna Leah McLenithan, and Henry McLenithan; and her sister, Antoinette “Toni” Gagan of Pine Bush.

Katie is also survived by the Ho-Jo Girls; her longtime childhood friends, Josephine Dill and Marilyn D’Angelo and her longtime friend and Hudson Falls neighbor, Irene Marshall.

Katie’s family would like to thank High Peaks Hospice for their support. They would like to especially thank Renee Belinger for her patience, guidance and compassion given to Katie in her final days.

Calling hours will be held on Thursday, May 2, 2024, from 3 pm to 6 pm at Carleton Funeral Home, Inc., 68 Main Street in Hudson Falls.

A funeral service for Katie will take place at 11 am on Friday, May 3, 2024, at the funeral home.

Memorial donations in Katies name may be made to the CR Wood Cancer Center, 100 Park Street Pruyn Pavilion, Glens Falls, New York 12801.