Catherine Andreycak – July 3, 1957 – March 6, 2017
Catherine Andreycak died in the early morning of March 6, 2017, after nearly six years of struggle against breast cancer. Cathy was the beloved husband of Steve Andreycak and mother of Brian, Will and Ben Andreycak. Cathy also was a partner at the Mount Kisco law firm of Shamberg, Marwell, Hollis, Andreycak & Laidlaw, a board member of the Westchester affordable housing owner and operator, A Home and a member of St. John’s Episcopal Church, Pleasantville.
Cathy was born July 3, 1957 the second child of Dorothy and Lewis Byrne, during a summer vacation in Rockaway, New York. She grew up in the West Fordham area of the Bronx and attended St. Nicholas of Tolentine Grammar School, the same school attended by her mother and her older brother. Subsequently, she attended Mt. St. Ursula High School and Fairfield University, from which she graduated in 1979. After working for a time at Grosset and Dunlap, she attended Fordham Law School, where she was Articles Editor of the Fordham Law Review and graduated cum laude in 1984. She then worked at the New York law firm of Patterson, Belknap, Webb, and Tyler. She joined the Mt. Kisco law firm now known as Shamberg, Marwell, Hollis, Andreycak & Laidlaw, P.C., in 1998, developing an admirable expertise in real estate transactions and serving a wide variety of large and small clients.
Cathy married fellow Fairfield graduate, Steve Andreycak in 1982. They resided in Mt. Vernon and Bronxville, before buying their home on Sunnyside Avenue in Pleasantville in 1993. Cathy served for many years on the board of A Home, a non-profit provider of affordable housing in Westchester County. She also served on the vestry of St. John’s Episcopal Church, in Pleasantville, on a parent board advising the Pleasantville School Board on construction of a new elementary school, and on numerous parent and citizen support groups. Cathy’s critical intelligence, combined with her ability to listen to others and calm demeanor, put her at the center of community decision making, as well as making her a very successful lawyer. She could attend to details without losing sight of larger social goal and ethical imperatives.
Cathy’s empathetic and caring character attracted a wide circle of friends as well as the devotion and love of her extended family. She was fortunate in living just the life she hoped to live: full of love, service, arts, family, and friends. She will be missed, remembered and her life will continue to inspire survivors to kindness and reflection.
A memorial service for Cathy will be held on Saturday, March 18th @ 2PM at Saint Mark’s Episcopal Church, 85 East Main Street, Mount Kisco, NY 10549. In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent in Cathy’s name to: A-Home Housing, 141 Tompkins Avenue, 3rd Floor, Pleasantville NY 10570.