Rosalie J. Danehy

Rosalie (“Robin”) Jones Danehy, formerly of West Haven, CT, passed peacefully on February 9, 2021. She was the beloved wife and partner of the late Benjamin J. Danehy, Jr. and the mother of ten children who were blessed to have Ben and Robin as their parents.

Robin was born in Bridgeport, CT, on March 3, 1927, the seventh of eight children of John and Rose (McCaul) Jones.  She attended Bassick High School in Bridgeport, followed by New Haven Teachers College (now Southern Connecticut State University). After graduating, she began teaching in Trumbull while working towards a master’s degree in education in a joint Yale University/New Haven Teachers College program.

Robin married Ben in 1950. They had a wonderful marriage, with each partner thinking that she/he was the lucky one in the relationship.  Robin continued her schooling part-time, finally getting her Master’s Degree in Education from Southern Connecticut, followed by her Sixth Year Certificate, ten years (and seven children) later. Robin was the primary “stay at home” parent while she and Ben raised their ten children but continued to work with her husband in the family’s real estate practice. When their youngest child started grammar school, Robin reentered the teaching field, working as a history teacher at Saint Lawrence School in West Haven. 

Later, in her sixties and seventies, Robin continued her work as a real estate broker and worked part-time at her sons’ appraisal services office. She continued to satisfy her love of learning through courses taken at Southern Connecticut State University, Albertus Magnus College, and the University of Cambridge, followed by courses offered through the West Haven adult education program which she enjoyed well into her eighties.

Prior to her move to The Linden in Woodbridge, Robin was a longtime member of St. Lawrence Parish in West Haven and a member of its Ladies’ Guild.  Robin enjoyed being involved in community activities, serving as a member and officer of many groups including the West Haven Jaycees, Sacred Heart Academy Mothers’ Club, Notre Dame High School Mothers’ Club, St. Lawrence School Mothers’ Club, West Haven Ward-Heitmann House Museum Foundation, Bradley Point Garden Club, and the West Haven Historical Society.

Robin was a remarkably energetic person who approached life with unwavering positivity.  She loved and cherished the people and events in her past, while eagerly looking forward to what was to come in the future, approaching each new day as an adventure.  She was blessed with a generous spirit and had a deep and abiding faith in human nature. She will be profoundly missed. 

Robin was predeceased by her parents and her seven siblings, John (Blanche), George, Henry, and David Jones, Mary (Martin) Carvan, Dorothy (Merton) Grilley, and Peggy (Donald) Hughes, and by her in-laws, Benjamin Danehy Sr. and Helen (Barry) Danehy, Regina and Jack Maloney, Joseph Barry Danehy, and Mary Elizabeth Danehy.

Robin lost her beloved husband, Benjamin, in 1996 and her oldest child, Paul (wife Mary Knott Danehy of Orange), in 2002. She is survived by her children Colleen Lindroos of Rocky Hill, Maureen Danehy Cox (Robert) of New Haven, Moira Danehy of New York City, Dolorita (Robert) Coutts of Branford, Benjamin Danehy (Kelley Cummings) of Milford, Sheila Danehy (Glenn Chizmazia) of Milford, Regina (David) Paulhus of Hamden, Mary (Brian) Miller of Alexandria, VA, and John Danehy of New Haven. She is also survived by her grandchildren Christine Danehy, Jenny Coutts, Carrie (Jeff) Suraci, Kate (Patrick) Conlin, Leah Cummings, Michael Cox, Daniel Cummings, Robert Coutts, Jr., Ryan (Rebekah) Danehy, Jack Chizmazia, Lily Cummings-Danehy, Paul Miller, Benjamin Danehy, Helen Chizmazia, Rosalie Miller and Brian Miller, and by two great-grandchildren, Etta Conlin and Sam Suraci. She is also survived by her brothers-in-law James Danehy, formerly of West Haven, and Donald Hughes of Suffolk, VA, and by many nieces and nephews.

The family extends its gratitude to the personnel at The Linden/Opal in Woodbridge who helped care for Robin during the past several years, and to the Beacon Hospice staff.

Care is entrusted to the Keenan Funeral Home, 238 Elm Street in West Haven, CT, https://www.keenanfuneralhome.com. There will be no calling hours or services at this time due to the current Covid-19 pandemic. Family and friends will celebrate Robin’s life in services to be held later this year.

For those who want to make a charitable gift in memory of Robin, please consider donations to the National Kidney Foundation, 30 East 33rd Street, New York, NY 10016; Sacred Heart Academy, 265 Benham Street, Hamden, CT 06514; Notre Dame High School, 1 Notre Dame Way, West Haven CT 06516; or a charity of your choice.

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