Constance Gallagher Hynes

Constance Gallagher Hynes died peacefully on May 16, 2019 at the age of 101. She was ready to move on and was surrounded by her sons, her daughters-inlaw and her good friend Betty Ingram. Connie was born in Brooklyn in 1917 and proudly lived there until she moved to Greenwich in 1985. Connie is survived by her sister Patricia Sheehan of Ridgefield, CT, her sons Tom, Chris and Ted Hynes, her daughters-in-law Eileen Hynes, Sherry Hynes and Jamie Hand, fourteen grandchildren, eleven great-grandchildren and an enormous number of cousins, nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her husband, the love of her life, Thomas W. Hynes. She was also predeceased by her parents John and Constance Gallagher, her sisters Dora McCann and Janet Jacobs, her brother John Gallagher and her great-granddaughter Mia McCaffrey.

Connie commuted from Brooklyn to Manhattanville College, then located on Convent Avenue in New York City, graduating in 1939. It was at Manhattanville that she displayed her athletic prowess as a member of the varsity basketball team. Her sons took great pride in the fact that their mother had played at the old Madison Square Garden. She was an active and enthusiastic alum and served as president of the Alumnae Association during the 1960s. When Manhattanville moved from upper Manhattan to Purchase, Connie was part of the fleet of station wagons driven by graduates who physically moved the contents of the library to the school’s new home. At the time of her death, Connie was the oldest living graduate of the college.

In addition to her parenting and volunteer activities, Connie worked as a social worker for the New York Foundling and as an elementary school teacher fo the New York City Board of Education. She had strong opinions and convictions and the voice to be heard. She was an avid and curious reader and pushed and pulled her three sons through various levels of education. She had a keen if recently frustrated interest in politics, was a golfer into her 80s, loved dogs and body surfing and on a few occasions boldly travelled as a private courier to Europe with her sister-in-law Aileen Zimmermann. Connie attributed her longevity to good posture, drinking water and being happy.

A memorial Mass will be celebrated Saturday, June 29, 2019 at 11:00 a.m. at the Convent of the Sacred Heart, 1177 King Street, Greenwich, CT. Following Mass, there will be a reception to celebrate Connie’s life.

In lieu of flowers, kindly consider contributions: Society of the Sacred Heart In Memory of Constance G. Hynes

4120 Forest Park Ave.

St. Louis, MO 63108