Catherine M. Beckman
July 29, 1953 - February 23, 2026
Catherine M. Beckman of Fort Collins, Colorado, shuffled off her mortal coil on Monday, February 23, 2026, at 10 am sharp at the age of 72. She had planned on living until at least the 35th anniversary of her heart transplant, this upcoming Thanksgiving. Instead, she took off early to join family and friends who had gone before her, including Joshua, the young boy whose heart she carried and protected through the second half of her life.
Born July 29, 1953 in southern California, the second of eleven children to the rather fecund Irene and Paul Beckman, the artistic and resourceful Catherine was a leader in many aspects of her life. Early on, she reached the rank of cadette as a Girl Scout. When Pope Paul VI switched out the OG Catholic Latin Mass, she co-founded a guitar group for the youth mass at St. Anthony Claret Parish in Anaheim, California. She further cultivated her Catholic spirituality by moving to Minnesota and attending the College of St. Catherine (St. Kate's) in Saint Paul, Minnesota, where she earned a bachelor's degree in theology.
In 1982, after she had settled in the Twin Cities, a prominent Minneapolis insurance company recruited her and 10 others to automate the issuing of policies using state-of-the-art technology called "word processing”. Catherine operated the word processor and, according to colleagues, made the machine "dance." The company moved on to desktop computer processing and Catherine managed the company’s first group of PC programmers. The technology she helped develop would appear to future consumers as the ability to explore and buy insurance policies online.
Her future took a turn when she was diagnosed with a serious heart problem that required a heart transplant. Her second life began on November 25, 1991 and included a series of battles -- with the country's health care system, with a culture that is not set up to support those with chronic conditions who choose to live independently, and with a donor heart, which, though welcome, coexisted as a foreigner within her own body.
This last battle was her most important. Her doctors, friends, obnoxious sisters, and science told her that her new heart would be fighting against her body, that her original body would be trying to reject her new heart, and that she had to fight back. Instead, she fought to integrate her heart, integrate her body with her new heart, to integrate Joshua. She attributed her continued life not only to the heart for which she was eternally grateful, but also to her success at this spiritual, mental, and emotional integration.
When Catherine wasn't fighting battles, she was satisfying her curiosity in the world. Among many interests, her niece Niki instilled in her a love of genealogy that resulted in roadtrips to far-flung states and boxes and boxes of documents. A puzzle that especially intrigued Catherine surrounded the events that led to her dad's brother Robert dying when he was a paratrooper in World War II.
She took joy and pride in helping herself and others when she could. Whenever she succeeded in finding a DIY solution to a problem, she shared it with friends, family, and connections on social media. She also graciously accepted help from those around her, though sometimes her midnight helpers just wanted to know what she would do with the green onions.
Her journey continues. She donated her body to integral anatomy research, where her form will be studied in a kind of holistic dissection that "values the interconnectedness of the body and our relationships with one another." The work with her form will be documented for education and research. A doctor in theological ethics from Duke University leads the work, located at the Institute for Anatomical Research in Colorado Springs, Colorado. After she makes her contribution, she will be cremated and returned to the family. Her ashes will be spread in the Rocky Mountains. She has entrusted site selection to close friends who know just what she's looking for in a final resting place.
Due to Catherine's interest in genealogy, it is appropriate to list as many relatives in her immediate family as possible, ones that don't require driving cross-country to find. Catherine is survived by many family members and friends, including Uncle Marty and Aunt Sally, siblings Leonard (Mary) Beckman, Paul (Kristan) Beckman, Robert (Karen) Beckman, John (Brittany Maverick) Beckman, Jim (Mary) Beckman, Joe (Jillian Rose) Beckman, Margaret Townsend, Mary Beckman, Sam (Cindy Wang) Beckman; nieces and nephews Joshua (Maryann) Beckman, Matthew (Emily) Beckman, Amanda (Brian) Heinritze, Larissa Beckman, Nathaniel (Jen) Beckman, David Beckman, Rosie (Kieran McCollom) McCollom, Brianna (Gavin) Hager, Zachariah (Regina) Beckman, Faustina (Elijah) King, Katrina Beckman, Sean Beckman, Troy Beckman, Shannon (Jonathan) Gee, Ryan (Alex Landeros) Beckman, Greg (Pam) Beckman, Elizabeth Beckman, Danielle (Justin) Oh, Robert (Dianna) Beckman, Michelle (Matthew Trias) Beckman, Maxwell Beckman, Nikita (Jorge) Pacheco, Paul (Nikki) Townsend, Aaron (Anahita Azadani) Beckman, Zoe Beckman, Cerena Beckman; grandnieces and grandnephews Colette Beckman, Joshua Beckman, Sadie Beckman, Phinneas Beckman, Evelyn Beckman, Jane Beckman, Trinity Heinritze, Philomena Heinritze, Tobias Heinritze, Kiara Heinritze, Samuel Heinritze, Jason Beckman, Keifer Beckman, Ada Beckman, Olive Beckman, Cynthia Beckman, Wesley McCollom, Xavier King, Aaron Gee, Timothy (Alexis Law) Gee, Andrew (Alani) Guzzetta, Annabel Gee, Carly Chavez, William Beckman, Michael Beckman, Robert "Hob" Beckman, James "Gem" Beckman, Fenix Beckman, Logan Pacheco, Branson Pacheco, Lucas Townsend, Charlotte Townsend; and great-grandnieces Hailey Law and Isla Guzzetta.
Catherine leaves behind many cousins and a handful of relatives who live outside the family circle. She also leaves behind her chosen family including friends Diane Blaser and Ellen Heath, a closely knit team of longtime, previous healthcare providers who advised her along her health odyssey including Adrienne Kania, longtime friends Rita Rodriguez and others, friends she made in the transplant community, and her Caribou friends who were so important to her in the last leg of her life.
She was preceded in death by parents Paul C. Beckman and Irene T. (Maciejczyk) Beckman, sister-in-law Donna Beckman, brother Bill Beckman, and a multitude of aunts, uncles, cousins, and friends.
Cremation and arrangements with the Institute for Anatomical Research are being handled by Be a Tree Cremation in Denver. A memorial service will be held in California on Saturday April 11, 2026 (please RSVP HERE, yes or no, and you can receive a link for live streaming closer to the event).
Catherine’s Memorial Service
Saturday April 11, 2026
1:30pm PDT
Orange, California
Please RSVP HERE, yes or no, and you can receive a link for live streaming closer to the event
Donations
In lieu of flowers, contributions in her name can be made to heart-health organizations, transplant research organizations such as the University of Minnesota Twin Cities, social support services, social justice associations, or by just being kind and generous to one another, especially to those less fortunate than you.
Photos of Catherine
