|
Mary Elizabeth Sharkey
Beloved sister, aunt, and grand-aunt;
Mary Elizabeth Sharkey, a retired Lowell Special Education teacher and longtime resident of the Highlands in Lowell, Massachusetts, passed away peacefully on Monday, April 15, 2024, at the Elizabeth Seton Residence in Wellesley.
Born in Lowell, MA, the daughter of the late Joseph W. Sharkey and the late Elizabeth (McQuade) Sharkey, Mary attended Lowell schools, graduating from Lowell High School with the class of 1962. She then attended Fitchburg State College where she earned a bachelor’s degree in Education before earning her Masters in Special Education from Lesley University.
Mary began her professional career first working in Boston for publishing company Allyn and Bacon but her real passion was teaching. Prior to her retirement, Mary worked as a special education teacher for the City of Lowell at the James S. Daley Middle School for over 30 years.
Post retirement, Mary volunteered at the Day Surgery of Saints Medical Center, and rescued her first dog Coby, and later, Laverne. Both dogs were lovingly cared for, enjoying royal treatment throughout their golden years.
Mary also loved visiting with her nieces and nephews and grand nieces and nephews. She was always ready with a joke, pun, or word game challenge. In her spare time, Mary enjoyed writing poetry, painting, flower arranging, and spending time at North Hampton and Ipswich beaches.
She is survived by a sister, Joanne (Sharkey) Byrnes and her husband, Dr. Stephen P. Byrnes, of Salem, NH; two nieces, Caera B. Horwitz and her husband Adam of Needham, MA, and Dr. Lael M. Yonker and her husband Neil of Newton, MA; two nephews, Dr. Kier S. Byrnes and his wife Amanda of Medford, MA, and Craig Devin Byrnes and his wife Jaclyn of Annapolis, MD; and eight grand-nieces and nephews, Aedan, Caela, and Breacan Byrnes, Lila, Charlie, and Kian Horwitz, and Livia and Eli Yonker.
Friends may call for her visitation Monday morning April 22, 2024, at the O'DONNELL FUNERAL HOME 276 PAWTUCKET ST. in LOWELL from 10:00 to 11:30 A.M. followed by her Funeral Mass to be celebrated at St. Margaret’s of Scotland Parish in Lowell, MA at 12:00 pm Noon. Her burial will follow at St. Mary Cemetery in North Tewksbury. E-condolences/directions at www.odonnellfuneralhome.com. Those wishing may make contributions in her memory to the Lowell Humane Society, 951 Broadway St., Lowell, MA 01854. Arrangements by Funeral Director James F. O'Donnell, Jr. (978) 458-8768.
|
Obituaries Notices 
