Photo by Matt de Simone
By Matt de Simone
For nearly a century, Catherine Watts has called Buchanan home.
She grew up spending Saturdays at the Buchanan Theatre before crossing the street to the drug store for a nickel Coke with friends. She graduated from Buchanan High School, built a decades-long career, devoted more than 75 years to her church, volunteered throughout her community, and raised a family rooted in the values of faith, honesty and hard work.
On Aug. 17, Watts will celebrate her 100th birthday, surrounded by the community that has been the backdrop of nearly every chapter of her life.
“I’ve had a good life,” Watts said. “God has been good to me. He blessed me with family, many friends, and good health.”
Born Aug. 17, 1926, Watts has spent nearly all of her life in the Buchanan area, leaving only briefly to attend National Business College in Roanoke and for a period living in neighboring Rockbridge County. She has lived in her current home for more than 40 years and still lives independently, driving herself and managing her own affairs.
Throughout her life, faith has remained her foundation.
A member of Trinity United Methodist Church in Buchanan for more than 75 years, Watts has served on numerous committees over the decades and continues to serve on the church’s Administrative Council and Financial Committee while also singing in the choir.
“My parents taught me to be honest and go to church,” she said. “I’ve carried that with me all my life.”
Those values extended beyond Sunday mornings.
Over the years, Watts has served as a director with the Fairview Cemetery Association, volunteered with the Buchanan Town Improvement Society, participated with Standing Room Only (Buchanan Theatre) and served on Buchanan’s Board of Zoning Appeals, quietly giving back to the town she loves.
Her grandson, John Mays, said service to others was simply part of who his parents were.
“They worked hard,” Mays said. “They instilled good values in us. We went to church every Sunday, and Buchanan was a good place to grow up. Family was important.”
Growing up in Buchanan during the 1930s and ’40s was simple, but full of memories that still bring a smile.
“The theater and the drug store across the street was our hangout place,” Watts recalled. “If we had a dime or a nickel, we’d buy a Coke, sit around the table for a while, then we’d go home.”
Summer days often meant heading into the woods with friends to gather chinquapins.
“They look like little chestnuts,” she explained. “We’d pick them and eat them. That was fun.”
Her father also made sure holidays were special.
“Every Fourth of July, he’d make sure we had something to do,” she said. “Sometimes we’d come to town, or he’d take us to Lakeside and we’d spend the day.”
School was important, too. A graduate of Buchanan High School, Watts laughed when asked about her favorite teachers.
“The ones that were the toughest became my favorites,” she said. “At the time, they weren’t.”
After graduating, Watts began her working career at Natural Bridge of Virginia, where she worked in the hotel office before moving to the Gatehouse, selling bridge tickets and assisting in the gift shop.
She later joined Lee’s Carpets, which eventually became Burlington Industries’ Lee’s Division, where she spent 45 years working in the office before retiring. Retirement didn’t last long, however, as she spent another five years working part-time at an outlet apparel store in Roanoke.
What did she enjoy most after nearly half a century in the workforce?
“I liked dealing with people,” she said simply.
Watts also witnessed history unfold firsthand.
Although she was too young to remember much about the Great Depression, she vividly recalls the sacrifices made during World War II.
“All the fellows were in the service,” she said. “There were shortages of sugar. Women couldn’t find nylon hose. There was a shortage of gasoline and tires. We were limited where we could go and what we could do.”
Family has remained at the center of her life.
She and her late husband, Joseph Eldridge Watts, shared 53 years of marriage before his passing 25 years ago. Together they raised two sons, John Daniel and James Michael Mays.
Asked what makes a marriage last more than five decades, Watts answered without hesitation.
“You’ve got to work on your marriage every day,” she said. “And you’ve got to have respect for each other.”
Her happiest memories include marrying the love of her life and welcoming her first grandchild.
“The happiest day was getting married,” she said. “And when John was born. He was the first grandchild.”
Mays remembers a childhood centered on family, church and the outdoors.
“My dad loved to hunt and fish,” he said. “Every Thanksgiving week we’d be out in the woods hunting deer. It was a family tradition, and Mom would prepare the venison. Those are memories I’ll always have.”
Later in life, Watts developed a love for travel. She has visited destinations including the Grand Canyon, Mount Rushmore, New Orleans and Mexico, but one of her favorite adventures was a month-long cross-country trip with her husband to visit family in California.
“We stopped anywhere we thought we wanted to see,” she recalled. “It was a leisure trip.”
Despite traveling across the country, Buchanan has always been home.
While she has watched the town change over the decades, what she treasures most has remained constant.
“It means a lot to me,” Watts said. “It’s a nice little town to live in. We have good churches, and there are good people here. I don’t think you’d find any better people anywhere else.”
She does have one wish for the community’s future.
“We need a good grocery store here in Buchanan,” she said with a laugh.
As she prepares to celebrate her 100th birthday, Watts isn’t focused on the remarkable milestone as much as the blessings that have filled the years leading up to it.
“I’ve had a good life,” she said. “God has blessed me with family, many friends and good health.”
It’s a life defined not by extraordinary headlines, but by steady faith, devoted service, enduring family ties and a lifelong commitment to the town she’s proud to call home. For Catherine Watts, that’s more than enough reason to celebrate a century well lived.
