Andrée Battiste Cavender was born on September 7, 1939 in New York City. She died on December 31, 2020, New Year's Eve, in Athens, Ohio. She was preceded in death by her mother, Estelle Cooper Battiste, and her father, Emil Pascal Battiste. Originally from Marseille, France, her father was a well-known jewelry designer in the U.S. and France, with clients including the Kennedy's and the Rockefellers.

She was graduated from the High School of Performing Arts in New York City majoring in music. She received her Bachelor's and Master's degrees in education from the University of Wisconsin, Madison. She subsequently taught children in Madison, Wisconsin; San Francisco, California and Crawfordsville, Indiana. In 1964, she married her husband of 56 years, James Cavender, Professor Emeritus in Environmental and Plant Biology at Ohio University.

After moving to Athens, Ohio in 1969, she taught piano for nearly twenty-five years mainly employing the Suzuki Method.

She and her husband traveled to Europe, Southeast Asia, the Caribbean and various places in Canada and the United States.

She is survived by her husband, James Cavender, three loving daughters and their husbands: Danielle and John Heskett, Jeannine and Kent Cavender-Bares, and Nicole Cavender and Gary Moneysmith. She is also survived by her seven grandchildren: Cameron, Gregory, and Zachary Heskett; Valerie and Celine Bares; and Laurel and Andrew Moneysmith. Additionally, she is survived by her cousin Judith Weis and several close friends; she was preceded in death by other close friends. Her eldest daughter, Danielle is a CPA and owns a practice in Valparaiso, Indiana; her second daughter, Jeannine, is a professor of ecology and evolutions at the University of Minnesota; her youngest daughter, Nicole, is the VP for Science and Conservation at the Morton Arboretum.

Andrée maintained a passion for classical music throughout her life and fully enjoyed deep friendships and interacting with people. She loved living in Athens. Spirituality was an important aspect of her life, and she was a member of the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship of Athens and the Association for Research and Enlightenment. She taught her children, by example, the value of living an emotionally honest and authentic life.

A private family service is scheduled for Saturday, January 9th at Jagers & Sons Funeral Home, Athens.

A Memorial Service and Life Celebration for Andrée Battiste Cavender will be held Sunday, September 5, 2021 at the Unitarian Universalist Fellowship, 184 Longview Heights Rd. Athens.  We will have prayer, poetry, reflections from family and community, music and food & beverages. Mom was a dedicated member and supporter of the UU Fellowship until her very last days. We welcome your memories.

Coffee will be at 10:00 a.m., Reflections and music will be at 10:30 a.m. and Lunch (catered by Purple Chopstix) will follow the service.  Please join us for an in-person memorial service for Andrée Cavender—beloved wife, mother, grandmother, cousin, friend, teacher and community member. We are requesting that attendees are fully vaccinated or are confirmed negative for covid19. We will also live stream the event at https://umn.zoom.us/my/cavender .