Darien Obituary

Margaret Bestercy, 100, Former Darienite, Trophy-Winning Bowler, Crossword Enthusiast

Laura Rowland, 65, Office Administrator, Mother, Avid Reader and Traveler

Kevin Cassidy, 60, Lawyer, Active Volunteer in Youth Sports and Boy Scouts

Maura Gallagher, 38, Former Darien Resident, Became Mother of Twins Just Before Passing Away

Viola ‘Vi’ Pike, 98, Former Darien Resident Who Outlived Six Bridge Groups

Margaret Love, 88, Artist, Avid Golfer, Longtime Town Resident, But ‘Eternal New Yorker’

Dianne Goodnow, 87, Longtime Darien Resident Active in Garden Club, Land Trust

Paul Sanchez III, 75, Darien High School Class of 1960

Frances Gaughan, 92, a Founding Member of St. Thomas More Church, ‘She Had a Green Thumb for Life’

John DeCesare, 81, Graphic Designer, Former Longtime Darien Resident

Maude Pettus, 103, Nurse in China, Member of Noroton Presbyterian Church

Sister Mary Handley, 83, Went to Darien Schools, Convert to Catholicism, Teacher

JoAnn Porter, 92, Former Darien Resident, Real Estate Agent

Rino Sanchioni, 86, Carpenter, Cabinet Maker, Former Darien Resident

Janet Tuck, 85, Painter and Sculptor, Former Darien Resident

Events Calendar

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 12, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 12, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 12, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 12, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 10, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 10, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 8, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 6, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | May 2, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | April 30, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | April 26, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | April 25, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | April 23, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | April 21, 2017

Obituaries

By David Gurliacci | April 19, 2017

Margaret Bestercy, age 100, a lifelong resident of Stamford and a former 10 year resident of Darien, passed peacefully on Wednesday, May 3 at The Villa at Stamford nursing home (formerly The Smith House). She was the daughter of the late John Bestercy and Mary Zamba. Margaret worked at Yale and Town with her identical twin sister Anna who passed away in 1952. They were inseparable and were usually seen walking back and forth to work from Myrtle Avenue. In her younger years, Margaret was a trophy-winning bowler.

Laura Rowland obituary thumbnail obit 05-12-17

Laura Rich Rowland, a resident of Darien, passed away peacefully beside her loving family on Wednesday, May 10. She was 65. She was born in Stamford on June 11, 1951 to Frank Dominic Rich Jr. and Jean Annabelle Rich Hopkins. Laura attended Wells College in Aurora, N.Y. She was employed as an administrator for SNET and Northeastern Mutual. Laura’s most recent employment was as an office administrator for Dr. Steven Rothenberg in Darien. Laura’s greatest happiness came from spending time with her husband, children and grandchildren, and with her wonderful extended family.

Kevin Joseph Cassidy of Darien went peacefully home to God surrounded by his loving family on Wednesday morning, May 10, after a long and bravely fought battle with lung cancer. Kevin was the devoted husband of Jacqueline Sinon Cassidy for 25 years and the loving father of his sons Kevin, Michael, and Brendan, and beloved daughter, Colleen. Born on Oct. 1, 1956, to Eleanor and Joseph Cassidy in Red Bank, N.J., Kevin grew up on the Jersey Shore with his two brothers Padraic and Brendan and his sister Kathleen. It was there that he developed his love of family, his great capacity for friendship, and his love of the ocean.

Maura Bridget Gallagher died on Tuesday, May 9, 2017 in Stamford. She was 38. She and her fiancé Max Di Dodo resided in New Canaan for the last four years. Maura and Max welcomed two beautiful children, Thomas Walter and Lyla Maura into the world on Monday, May 8. More than anything, Maura wanted to be a mother.

Viola Emma (Porter) Pike died peacefully on May 7 at the age of 98, following a brief illness. Vi spent her final days at home in Sandwich, Mass., with her daughter Cindy ever-present, and other family members in regular attendance. She was predeceased by her husband, Arthur J. (Art) Pike, and her son, Arthur J. Pike, Jr. (Pikey), the former in 1989 and the latter in 1993. Vi’s parents, Alexander and Elizabeth Wilson Porter, came to the U.S. from Ireland at the turn of the 20th century. Together, they created a family of five — Bob, “Biggie,” George, Libby, and Vi — and a 36-acre farm in Lexington, Mass., where Vi was born on April 22, 1919.

Margaret L. Love, 88, of Redding, formerly of Hilton Head, S.C. and Darien — and an eternal New Yorker, died May 3, 2017. Peggy attended Dominican Academy in Manhattan and Albertus Magnus College in New Haven. Immediately following college graduation, she married Dick Love. His work took him to many companies and the family to many states. They lived in Douglaston, N.Y.; East Norwich, N.Y.; Fairfield; Livingston, N.J.; Winwood, Pa., Livingston, N.J. (again); Palatine, Ill.; Upper St.

Dianne Throckmorton (Dee) Goodnow, 87, a longtime resident of Darien, passed away peacefully on April 24 in her home with her family. Dee enjoyed life to the fullest. Possessing boundless energy, Dee’s days were filled with a love for her gardens, animals, art and the outdoors. She was an avid sportswoman winning many tennis and golf matches. Dee was born in New Rochelle, N.Y., on June 1, 1929, to Harold Avington Throckmorton and Dorothy Mason Throckmorton and was raised in Rye, N.Y., and Great Barrington, Mass.

Paul Sanchez III thumbnail obituary 05-06-17

Paul Francis Sanchez 3rd., 75, passed away Friday, April 29, 2017, in the Concord Hospice House, Concord, N.H.

Paul was born Oct. 15, 1941, in Norwalk, the son Paul Francis Sanchez Jr. and Edna Fairchild Sanchez. Paul grew up in Darien and graduated from Darien High School in 1960. After high school, he went into the United States Army and served as a Paratrooper in the 82nd Airborne Division. Upon leaving from the Army, he attended and graduated from Norwalk Community College and was an avid sky diver. After college, Paul enjoyed a successful 25-year career as a technology salesman in the newspaper and printing industry.

Frances A. Gaughan, 92, passed away on April 23, 2017 in Norwalk Hospital resulting from a fall. Frances was born on May 30, 1924, in Trenton, New Jersey, daughter of the late Angelo and Angela Nardi. She grew up with six sisters, Armida (Mitha), Bianca (Blanche), Olga, Emma, Maria (Mary) and is survived by her younger sister Lena (Tootie) Panfili and a large extended family nearby. During World War II she worked at the Grumman Aircraft Factory in Trenton, N.J. wiring bomb-bay junction boxes in fighter planes. She married John Paul Gaughan on September 17,1949 and was the proud mother of five children, Mary Elizabeth Westlund (Meg), John Paul Gaughan Jr., Barbara Ann Gaughan, Margaret Patricia Ford (Patti) and Thomas Nardi Gaughan.

John A. DeCesare, a resident of Guilford and a former 35-year resident of Darien, passed away on Sunday, April 23 at Yale New Haven Hospital. He was 81. Born on Aug. 13, 1935 in the Bronx, he was the son of the late Louis A. and Marjorie (Chism) DeCesare. John attended Brown University and the University of Buffalo (Albright Art School).

Maude Miller Pettus went home to be with the Lord at her home in Stamford on April 22 at the age of 103. She was a very special woman, marked by God, who had a deep well of wisdom, a great sense of intuition, and lived a full, joyful life. Maude was born in Springs, Pa. on April 7, 1914, and received her nursing degree from Capital City School of Nursing in Washington, DC in 1936. During her training, she met a Yale medical school student William Winston Pettus, whom she married on June 23, 1937.

Sister Mary William Handley of the Sisters of Charity of Our Lady, Mother of the Church, entered Eternal Life on Saturday, April 22 at the Sisters of Charity Motherhouse Health Care Center in Baltic. She was born Patricia Handley in Norwalk Sept. 10, 1933 the daughter of the late William and Dorothy (Raymond) Handley. Sister was baptized in the Methodist Church before converting to Catholicism in 1952. After attending schools in Darien, she entered the Sisters of Charity in Baltic in 1963 and professed Perpetual Vows in 1972.

JoAnn E. Porter passed away peacefully on April 4, 2017 at the age of 92. She was born and raised in Toledo, Ohio, the daughter of William and Clara Peters, and younger sister of Marge Sayre. She was married to John O. Evans with whom she had four children. Later she married James F. Porter and moved to Darien, where together they continued to raise their five children. She was a talented woman with many interests.

Rino Sanchioni, 86, passed away at Villa Crest Nursing & Retirement Center in Manchester, N.H. on Tuesday, April 18, following an extended illness. Born in Stamford, Rino was the son of Attilio Sanchioni and Elvira (Righi) Sanchioni. Both his parents emigrated from Italy as young adults. Rino grew up in Stamford and graduated from trade school. He served in the U.S. Navy for four years during the Korean War and toured the world aboard the carrier USS Coral Sea.

Janet Barber Tuck, 85, an artist and former Darien resident, died on Sunday, April 16. She had Alzheimer’s disease. Born Dec. 7, 1931 in Aurora, Ill., she lived in Aurora and Oswego, Ill., El Granada, Calif., Darien, Cordova, Tenn., Westport, Bellevue, Wash., West Covina, Calif., and Waxhaw, N.C.

She graduated from the American Academy of Art in Chicago and was the art director of the Lester Jacobs Advertising Agency. Janet went on to practice fine art full time, winning several first-place awards for her work.

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