Published in the Charleston City Paper
Catherine Coleman Brack did not go gentle into that good night, raging against the dying of the light until her last breath. She died on July 26, 2024, at the age of 55 from complications from stage 4 breast cancer.
Born in Jesup, Georgia, by age 5 Brack was actively working on eliminating the twang from her Southern lilt. In no particular order, Brack spent part of her formative summers in Hilton Head Island, S.C., Jekyll Island, Ga., and the hottest place on earth, Macon, Ga., where she often arrived unaccompanied on a Greyhound bus to see her Grandmother Effie as early as age 8.
She grew up in the suburbs of Atlanta, Ga., and attended J.W. Dyer Elementary School, Norcross Elementary School, Summerour Middle School and spent grades 7 to 12 at The Marist School, where she excelled at academics and music, but, true to her family dynamic, performed dreadfully in PE.
Brack played both the flute/piccolo (to her continued dislike) and the piano, which she eventually pursued through to a graduate degree in musicology. She dabbled in viola di gamba at one time.
Brack attended Vanderbilt University, earning a (ahem) B.S. degree in European History and Music. She dearly wanted to graduate with a music degree, but agreed with her family that such a pursuit would not likely lead to many job opportunities, though, oddly, her master’s degree did.
Brack was awarded a master’s of Music with an emphasis on Baroque opera and musicology from Florida State University.
As an adult, Brack lived in Atlanta, Ga., working for corporations and nonprofit organizations, leaving her hometown in 1998 to go to Washington, D.C. In D.C., she spent 18 years working as a fundraiser for multiple nonprofit organizations, raising millions of dollars for various causes, renovating and flipping houses, and more-often-than-not dating men named either David or Chris. In 2017, Brack returned to the South, landing in Charleston, S.C. to be closer to her immediate family.
Gossip to her was an art form. She admired snarkiness like others might admire fine wines or art. She adored those, too. Her beverage holy trinity was rosé, bourbon and Coca-Cola.
Brack never babysat, married or wanted kids. Instead, she spent her non-beach-related summer time in the basement of her family’s home building condo units for Barbie and her friends. Always a bridesmaid, never wanting to be a bride, she only wore red to weddings.
Brack visited every state in the U.S. except Hawaii, as well as many foreign countries during her lifetime. She was a lover of beaches, but not particularly sand. A well-positioned pool was ideal for her temperament.
Brack volunteered throughout her life, contributing in various ways to Habitat for Humanity, Grace Church Cathedral, the Charleston Animal Society, LENS, Athletes Without Limits, Capitol Hill Arts Workshop, rebuilding projects in West Virginia and France, and was one heck of a Girl Scout cookie salesperson.
Brack leaves in her wake a group of lifelong friends and colleagues with whom she formed deep, lasting relationships. She is survived by her wonderfully Southern Gothic family, including her father, Elliott Earl Brack, and mother, Barbara London Brack, both of Norcross, Ga.; her brother Andrew (Andy) Clayborne Brack, of Charleston, S.C.; her nieces, Avery London Brack and Ellen (Ellie) Hampton Brack, both of Charleston; her former sister-in-law, Courtenay Neff Brack of Charleston, as well as her ornery, mouthy Russian Blue, award-winning cat, Mr. T.
True to her Taurus roots, Brack loved parties, smart people, frivolity, great restaurants, gold, stocks, travel, animals though not mosquitoes, music, and near-about every other hedonistic pleasure one can imagine. In short, she had a fabulous time on this earth.
A gathering to honor Brack’s remarkable life is being planned for a time later this year. If you want to memorialize her, you may want to consider making a donation to the Charleston Animal Society or to the Blair School of Music at Vanderbilt University.
You may not know who I am or what I mean
But I will be good faith to you nevertheless.
And filter and fiber your soul.Failing to fetch me at first, keep encouraged.
Missing me one place, search another.
I stop, somewhere, waiting for you.– Walt Whitman
Catherine Coleman Brack
April 21, 1969 – July 26, 2024
