HOLYOKE: Mary Gertrude (Sullivan) Feyre, age 95, (1925 – 2020) of Holyoke, passed away peacefully at her home, surrounded by the love and affection of her sons and daughters on Wednesday, November 11, 2020. She was born in Holyoke on May 7, 1925, daughter of the late Cornelius J. and Bertha C. (Gehan) Sullivan. Mary attended Holyoke Public Schools and graduated from Holyoke High School, class of 1942. After high school, she began her professional career as a Stenographer and Office Coordinator for the Henry G. Sears Company. She later became a Paraprofessional in the Holyoke Public School System. In 1990, she retired from the Chicopee Welfare Department after many enjoyable years, where lasting and lifelong friendships were established.
She married Raymond J. Feyre, also of Holyoke, on December 15, 1945. Soon after marrying Raymond, they started their family and shared some of their greatest memories on trips to the shores of Connecticut and New Hampshire. Mary enjoyed vacationing on the beaches of Old Lyme Shores, Florida and Maine, along with adventures that took her to Italy, Alaska and Ireland. During these recent years of her life, Mary relished the activities and the camaraderie at the Holyoke Senior Center, reuniting and socializing with old friends. She was a communicant at St. Jerome Church in Holyoke and a former longtime parishioner of Sacred Heart Church (Our Lady of Guadalupe) in Holyoke.
Mary was predeceased by her beloved husband of forty-three years, Raymond J., in 1988; her brothers, Charles T. Sullivan and Cornelius J. Sullivan; and sister, Catherine E. (Sullivan) Gilboy. She was also predeceased by her twin grandchildren, David and Laura Feyre, in 1987, and her son-in-law, Shaun P. Bresnahan, who passed away in 2001.
Her lifetime devotion was to her family. Blessed to treasure her memory are her eleven children: Christine M. Dow (William), Kathleen E. Bresnahan, Mary M. Lynch (Art), Raymond H. Feyre (Susan), Thomas C. Feyre (Susan), John J. Feyre, Margaret M. Feyre, James M. Feyre (Gina), Maureen A. Feyre Febonio (Victoria), Robert J. Feyre (Robin), and Michael C. Feyre (Lisa).
Mary is also survived by her 21 grandchildren: William Jr., Kelley, Kathleen, Maire, Mollie, Sean, Mary Ellen, Maureen, Hayley, Brynn, Rachel, Lisa, Ryan, Connor, Olivia, Eva, Christopher, Andrew, Michael, Kaitlyn and Shaunna and her seventeen great-grandchildren: Margaret and Eleanor Coen, Sullivan and Liam Webster, Emma, Jack, Patrick and Liam Tisdell, Francis, Charlotte, Eloise and Harrison Dunn, Kendall and James Gillis, Cullen and Grace Sullivan, and Emilia Scannell. She is survived by many nieces and nephews and their children.
The Feyre family wishes to express their deepest appreciation and gratitude to Dr. Frank Croke and Dr. Khawar Maqsood for their kindness and support. They would like to extend a special thank you to Nurses Donna and Marie and the entire staff at the Holyoke VNA and Hospice Life Care for their compassionate care that was provided to their mother.
Calling hours for Mary will be held on Saturday, November 14, 2020 from 9:30 to 11:00 a.m. at St. Jerome’s Church, 169 Hampden Street, Holyoke, MA. Her funeral mass will follow at 11:30 a.m. Due to the Covid Pandemic, burial will be private at St. Jerome’s Cemetery, Holyoke. In lieu of flowers, the Feyre family requests that donations be graciously submitted in Mary’s memory to the Sisters of St. Joseph Retirement Fund, 577 Carew Street, Springfield, MA. 01104 or Harmony House, P. O. Box 6135, Holyoke, MA. 01041.
