Marguerite J. Donohue

Marguerite Joyce Donohue, of Hingham, formerly of Needham and Cape Cod passed peacefully on April 30th, 2017.

She was born in Portland, Maine, the daughter of Catherine Thornton Joyce and Patrick Joyce, and the youngest sister to Mary (Olson), Joseph and Paul Joyce.  She was happily married for 55 years to the late Thomas F. Donohue. She leaves her children, T. Gregory Donohue of Needham, Stephen P. Donohue and his wife Karen of Wakefield, Rhode Island, Katherine Donohue Yeo and her husband Ron Yeo, of Albuquerque, New Mexico, Anne Donohue and her husband Stephen Conlin of Belmont, Massachusetts, seven wonderful grandchildren: Lisa, Kevin, Heather, Rory, Jeremy, Peter and Katie, many loving nieces and nephews, and legions of friends. Marguerite said her children were the pride of her life and her grandchildren, her joy.

She was a graduate of St. Joseph’s Academy and the Northeastern Business School of Portland, Maine. Before she was married, Marguerite was a Division Training Instructor for many years for the New England Telephone Company, traveling throughout the state of Maine training Service Representatives. 

Marguerite returned to the phone company, after her four children were school age, as a Service Representative in the Boston area. Marguerite and her family lived in many communities throughout the northeast but she spent most of her adult life in Needham, where she was an active parishioner at St. Bartholomew’s Church. She and her husband retired to East Dennis and later Yarmouthport before she moved to Linden Ponds in Hingham. She volunteered at Cape Cod Hospital, Meals on Wheels and was active in St. Pius X Church in Yarmouth. 

In 1978-79, Marguerite lived in Tehran, Iran where her husband took a position with American Bell International. They were there during the revolution that brought down the Shah of Iran and ushered in Ayatollah Khomeini. She and her husband visited dozens of countries in Europe and the Middle East and traveled widely in the United States, including many visits to New Mexico and Rhode Island to witness her grandchildren’s athletic and theatrical feats. 

Marguerite was a die-hard Red Sox fan. She cheered on the Celtics and Patriots as well.  She refused to divulge her age saying, “age is just a number and mine is unlisted”.  One hint: she was BORN in a year when the Red Sox won the World Series but she had to wait 86 years to see it happen again in 2004.  You do the math. 

Relatives and friends are respectfully invited to attend the visiting hours on Saturday at 9:30AM in the Pyne Keohane Funeral Home, 21 Emerald St. (off Central St.), HINGHAM. A Funeral Mass will be held in St. Albert the Great church in Weymouth at 11AM. In lieu of flowers, donations in memory of Marguerite may be made to Catholic Charities, 51 Sleeper Street, Boston, MA 02210 or the Perkins School of the Blind 175 North Beacon Street, Watertown, MA 02472 or a charity of your choice.