Lorraine Kiernan

Lorraine Kiernan slipped peacefully away on Monday March 25, 2024 at the University of Maryland's, Baltimore-Washington Medical Center in Glen Burnie, Maryland. She was 81.
Born Lorraine Wood, she was the daughter of the late Edgar and Lillian Dean Wood. A native of Jersey City, Lorraine was a 1960 graduate of Dickinson High School, and a 1964 graduate of Jersey City State College with a degree in education. She went on to become an elementary school teacher in the Perth Amboy Public School System. Her career spanned 36 years, mostly in third grade. Lorraine had an impressive reputation in education. She was well known and respected by her colleagues for her unwavering commitment to her students, instilling discipline, and maintaining high expectations for justice and fairness in education.
She met Matthew Kiernan in 1954 and they married in 1967.. They became wonderful parents to their son Shawn and adopted daughter Kathleen. Shawn took to bagpiping, and his mother wholly supported his cause by driving up and down the East Coast, making sure he was always on time and totally prepared for the Highland Games. She also helped run the piping competitions at Bonnie Brae for several years. Lorraine felt that knowing where one came from and their family's history was important. She and Matt spent many years researching their family histories, and uncovering many interesting people and stories along the way. Their genealogy search led them on travels to homes of their ancestors including New York's Hudson Valley, multiple places in New Jersey, Macclesfield, England, and numerous towns and villages in Ireland. She also served as Secretary for several years for the Blauvelt Association.
Lorraine loved time with her family, and was a voracious reader. She cherished having a good book in her hand and a dog at her side. She was relentlessly dependable, fiercely independent, and could methodically turn chaos into order. She had a sarcastic and witty sense of humor that made her easy to talk to even if you didn't know her yet. True to her Irish/English heritage one of her prized possessions was her sizeable collection of Waterford crystal.
After retiring she and Matt spent their summers as residential campers in New Paltz, NY where they made some life-long friends. They eventually moved the camper to Lancaster, PA after they moved to Maryland to be closer to their grandchildren.
Lorraine was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 50 years, Matt in 2017, daughter Kathleen in 2023, her sisters Doris Hambach and Irene Stanley. She is survived by her son, Shawn and his family, cousins, nieces, nephews, and numerous extended family and friends. She will be terribly missed by her grandchildren Saoirse and Maebh who brought her unending joy from the day they were born.
Friends may call at the Flynn and Son Funeral Home, 23 Ford Ave., Fords, on Tuesday, April 2, 2024 from 4:00pm – 7:00pm and where funeral services will take place on Wednesday, April 3, 2024 at 10:30am. She will be laid to rest with Matt in St. Gertrude Cemetery Mausoleum, Colonia.