Peter N. Dennehy

1947 - 2024

Peter Normann Dennehy died peacefully in Providence, RI at the age of 77 on October 24, 2024, after a seven-year struggle with Lewy body dementia. He is survived by his wife of almost 50 years, Penelope (Penny) Hill Dennehy, M.D.

Peter was born in Garden City, NY to the late Gerald and Margherita (Mori) Dennehy. He spent his childhood in Setauket, NY where he developed his love of sailing and tennis.

Peter graduated from Phillips Andover Academy (Class of 1965) and Harvard University (Class of 1970). Prior to college, he spent a gap year at the Shrewsbury School in Shrewsbury, England (UK) on an English Speaking Union Secondary School Exchange Scholarship. After graduating from college, he served in the Peace Corps in Senegal for a year. Upon his return to the United States, Peter moved west to attend the University of Washington School of Law (Class of 1973) in Seattle, where he was briefly joined by Penny before they made their permanent home in Rhode Island.

Peter spent his legal career as a public servant, first working as a King County Public Defender in Seattle. After moving to Rhode Island with Penny for her pediatric residency, he spent the rest of his career working for the State of Rhode Island, first as the State Mental Health Advocate and then as an attorney for the Department of Behavioral Healthcare, Developmental Disabilities and Hospitals, the Department of Transportation, and finally the Department of Administration.

Peter lived in Barrington, RI for 46 years, during which time he served on the Town Council, the Zoning Commission, and the Barrington Boosters. He helped to coach several youth soccer teams and was a devoted and enthusiastic attendee of spin classes at the Bayside YMCA.

Prior to his illness, Peter had boundless energy that he burned off through bicycling, sailing, and hiking. He will be remembered for leading grueling bike trips across Cape Cod that strained the goodwill of friends and family alike. In his younger days, Peter competed on the varsity track and cross-country teams at both Andover and Harvard. He completed two Boston Marathons with his best time being 3 hours and 2 minutes. He always said if he knew how close he was to breaking 3 hours he would have run a little faster. He was an avid reader throughout his life and a font of (mostly useless) trivia that came in handy during family games of Cold-War-era-edition Trivial Pursuit. Peter loved his family and showed that love by peppering them with questions and providing advice (whether solicited or not).

In addition to his wife, Peter is survived by two younger sisters, Deirdre Roettinger (Walter) and Nancy Eichacker (Peter); his daughter Johanna Dennehy (Steven Schaus); his son Peter M. Dennehy (Christina); two grandchildren, Thomas Dennehy and Sofia Dennehy; and eight nieces and nephews.

A memorial service is planned for April 2025. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations can be made to Steere House (steerehouse.org/giving), where Peter received wonderful care during his final years, or HopeHealth Hospice and Palliative Care (hopehealthco.org/ways-to-give/donatenow). Please visit www.smithmason.com for online condolences.