Mary Katherine Walsh

Former Hawley School Teacher Was Newtown Relay For Life Team Leader And Speaker

Mary Katherine Walsh, 54, of Sandy Hook, died April 6, after a long, brave battle with cancer. She was born April 9, 1957, in Queens, N.Y., where she was also raised.

She leaves Gene, her beloved husband of 29 years, and three amazing sons, Sean, Bryan, and Kevin. She is also survived by her brother John Perrell and his wife Kristina of Naperville, Ill. Their two children were so cherished by their Auntie Mary, and she always looked for opportunities to spend time with them. She leaves behind another brother, Dan Ferguson, and his wife Nancy, of Houston, and their children Jim, Mei Ying, Tim, and John and their families in Massachusetts, New York, and Florida; as well as a brother-in-law, Gary Walsh of Bayside, N.Y.

Her father, Eugene Ferguson; her mother, Catherine Perrell; her stepfather, Carmine Perrell, and two brothers, Eugene and Thomas Ferguson, all predeceased her.

Mrs Walsh was a special education teacher in the New York City Public School system for seven years. The Walsh family moved to Sandy Hook from Long Island in 1994. She was a successful executive sales manager with Tupperware, before going back to teaching, once all three sons were in school.

She was proud to teach at Hawley School, where she worked until her recent retirement, serving the Newtown Public School System for almost 15 years. A dynamic person, her work ethic, compassion, skill, and love of children earned her respect and admiration from students, parents, and teachers alike.

The Walshes were active parents, supporting their children in a variety of activities throughout Newtown. They could always be found cheering at Babe Ruth baseball games, Park and Rec basketball games, early morning hockey games, as well as Newtown High School football and hockey varsity games. Mrs Walsh was also the president of the NHS Choral Parents Association for two years and was a dedicated volunteer supporting Singers, the NHS musical productions, and fundraising for the NHSCP Scholarship program.

Mrs Walsh loved to travel and created many cherished memories with her family and friends. She loved their condo at Smugglers Notch, Vt., and annual visits to the theme parks in Florida when the boys were growing up. She really loved the beach and for the past seven years had enjoyed numerous visits to the Dominican Republic. Recent trips to Alaska and Ireland were also a source of great joy to Mrs Walsh.

Her friends were very special to her. In the absence of family nearby, she was blessed to have friends that were her family. She especially enjoyed her time spent in Maryland with her very dear friends, Nancy, Sue, and Lois.

Before her cancer diagnosis in 2006, she participated in the American Cancer Society Relay For Life in Bethel. She was the Survivor speaker at the Newtown Relay For Life kickoff in 2007 and was also chosen by ACS to be Survivor Guest Speaker at the Danbury Making Strides Against Breast Cancer.

As a teacher, she was a dynamic presenter and touched many with her story and her positive attitude. She was very well-read about breast cancer and treatment options, and was a source of information and support to many she came in contact with. She has been the captain of teams at the Newtown Relay For Life since it began and actively participated in the 2011 Relay on the team Hawley’s Heroes.

A private memorial service will be held at the convenience of the family.

Memorial contributions may be made to the American Cancer Society at www.cancer.org.

Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street in Newtown, is assisting the family.

The Newtown Bee        April 13, 2012