Cathleen Ann Rhodes

Cathleen Rhodes, 76 of Boynton Beach, Florida, passed away at Bethesda Hospital East on February 18th, 2026.

Cathleen was born Cathleen Ruiz on July 27th, 1949 in New Orleans, LA. Cathleen was a free-spirited and energetic child and her favorite place to be was wherever her older brother Allie Ruiz was. She loved spending summers on the family farm in Platte, South Dakota where she played with her cousins. Cathy was a tomboy, riding her bike, playing baseball, volleyball and dancing. She attended Saint Joseph Grammer School and Behrman High School, where she made lifelong friendships. She had many different jobs over her life; secretary, school bus driver, television show host including her own television show “It’s a Rap”, and actress. The job she enjoyed the most was teaching people how to dance. She taught dance at Authur Murray studios in New Orleans and New Hampshire and then continued to teach at 4 different private studios in Charlottesville and Richmond, VA. She was well known by the grocery store employees for dancing down the aisles while she shopped. Cathleen was an avid west coast swing dancer, competing in many competitions, and was president of the Charlottesville Swing Dance Society and USA Dance in Virginia.  Cathleen loved meeting and talking to people and she brought so much energy and life with her wherever she was, whether it was at work or parties. She was always ready for the next adventure and her smile lit up a room. She loved fashion and always had a glamorous outfit on, even if it was just a casual get-together.

Cathleen and her husband William were married for 40 years and moved to Florida in 2018. She loved Florida, always saying how thankful she was to live there in the warm sunshine. Family was important to Cathleen and she always made sure her house was big enough for her family to get together, especially for holidays. Cathleen loved playing board games, cards and pool volleyball during these visits. She was a fabulous chef, cooking everything from scratch and often with a New Orleans flair. Family and friends’ favorites were Strawberry Cream Pie, Cornbread Dressing, Mustard Chicken, Shrimp Stew and Red Beans and Rice.

Cathleen has joined her daughter Monica Schwartz in Heaven. She is survived by her husband William as well as their children and their spouses: Faith Roche, Emmanual and Renda Delemos and Christen and Rob Kozura. Additional family includes her brother and his spouse Allie and Sharon Ruiz as well as their children Laura and Nicole Ruiz. Grandchildren include Jonathan Yost, Paul Alan Delyea, Joe and Isis Schwartz, Laticia Selden, Emilio Delemos, and Jade Roche.  Surviving cousins include Mickey Mirkin, Steve Mirkin, Kristi Chenoweth, Jolinda Gray, Tracy Vasquez, Tami Castaneda, Jeff Wright and Scott Wright.

A memorial service will be held to celebrate Cathleen’s life on Saturday, March 21st from 1-4pm at the Glick Funeral Home, 3600 N Federal Highway, Boca Raton, FL 33431. Visiting hours are 1-3pm and the service will start at 3pm. To watch the live stream of the Memorial Service please click the following link  https://drive.google.com/file/d/1E_kVP3AXWA9ObSJs8OvvybvUnJn_ZeCN/view?usp=drive_link 

Cathleen loved the colors of turquoise and teal. Attendees are welcome to wear something with those colors in her honor.

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