Obituary of Cathy Morriscey-Coulthart

It is with heavy hearts that we announce the passing of our beloved mother, grandmother, wife, sister and friend, Catherine (Cathy) Morriscey-Coulthart on November 6th, 2025. She died peacefully surrounded by her family, who were comforted knowing she is no longer in any pain after suffering from rheumatoid arthritis and related illnesses for much of her adult life. She is survived by her cherished husband of 44 years, Gord, her children Andrew (Fay), Tori (Tristan), and Scott (Celina) and grandchildren Emerson, Madeline and Isaac. She also leaves behind her sisters Anne (Steve) Gail (Dave) and brother Brian (Corinne) as well as her nieces and nephews Alex, Kendra, Julia, Emma, Rena and Bryce.

Cathy was born to loving parents Gordon and Marguerite Morriscey in Ottawa on February 4th, 1955. After graduating high school, Cathy attended Algonquin College’s Commercial Art program along with her sister Anne. It was there that she met her future husband, Gord Coulthart. Upon graduating, Cathy and Gord quickly found work at a local animation studio Atkinson Filmarts. Starting as a cell painter, Cathy moved up the ranks to work as a visual effects artist before transitioning to the production department. Through her career in animation, Cathy met lifelong friends and worked on celebrated projects such as The Racoons, Care Bears, Heavy Metal and The Nutcracker Prince.

To know Cathy was to know a deeply creative person who was inspired by everything around her. After a hiatus in the animation industry to raise her children, Cathy decided to pursue a career in another lifelong passion of hers, interior design. Cathy had an incredible gift for visualizing spaces and designing homes and was able to execute her vision impeccably. This gift was always evident around the holidays, when Cathy would always adorn her house with beautiful Christmas decorations. Whether it was decorating the tree or watching Home Alone and Elf on repeat, her passion for the magic of Christmas was contagious.

Cathy loved the art of the conversation and always enjoyed long chats with her many friends and family. She was a passionate connoisseur of media, art, music and design and a lover of animals, especially fluffy ragdoll cats. She will be forever loved by her family and friends and will be deeply missed.

Our heartfelt thanks to the loving and caring staff at the Ottawa Civic ICU unit.

A Celebration of Life will be held on Sunday November 30^th between 1PM – 4PM at the NAC in the Rossy Pavilion.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the Ottawa Food Bank in Cathy’s honour would be most appreciated.