Audrey V. Gehan

Audrey V. Gehan Wolfeboro - Audrey Van Gorden Gehan of Wolfeboro, NH, and formerly of Rochester, NY, died on May 15, 2023 after a long and full life.

Audrey was born in Newark, NY on January 1,1936 to the late Paul and Helen (Downs) Van Gorden. After graduating from Newark High School, she received her B.S. degree from Cornell University, class of 1958. She met a handsome bartender named Bill Gehan at "The Dolphin" in Sodus Point, NY and they married a year later. The couple moved to Washington, DC where Bill was attending Georgetown Law School and Audrey taught second grade in Frederick, MD. After graduation the couple returned to western New York and settled in Rochester.

In addition to being the mother of five, Audrey worked as a real estate agent, in the office of development at McQuaid Jesuit High School, as administrative assistant to the chief of cardiology at Strong Memorial Hospital, and as a sales/customer service representative for Blue Cross and Blue Shield of Rochester, NY.

After their retirement, Audrey and Bill moved to Wolfeboro, NH to be closer to their five children, all of whom had settled in the Boston area. They loved living in New England and made many friends and were active in the parish at St. Katharine Drexel. Audrey was an avid bridge player and would play every day of the week if she could round up the players. She enjoyed gardening and was a member of the Garden Club of Wolfeboro and the Hikers. She loved her kids, grandkids, and dogs. She moved to Boston in August 2022 and was loved by her many new friends at Compass on the Bay Memory Care Center. She was known for her wonderful sense of humor and great fashion choices.

She is predeceased by her husband William F. Gehan and survived by her five children: William M. Gehan of Boston, MA; Thomas K. Gehan and his wife Michelle of Hollis, NH; Anne G. McNamara and her husband John of Melvin Village, NH; Kathleen G. Childs of Brunswick, GA; and Mary G. Palmer and her husband Joseph of Saugus, MA, and eight grandchildren: Charlotte, Eliza, and Paul Gehan, Jack, Liz, and Will McNamara, and Emily and Lucy Childs.

A celebration of her life will be held at St. Katharine Drexel on Friday May 26, 2023 at 11am. The service will be live streamed. In lieu of flowers please consider donations to St. Katharine Drexel Parish (stkdrexel.org).