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Maria Shea Obituary
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Maria spent the first 34 years of her life in Upstate New York. She grew up in Liverpool where she was proficient at everything she did. She had an early stint as a performer when she took the part of Dorothy in the Wizard of Oz in late grade school. She was a cross-county and track athlete in high school. After graduating from Liverpool High School, she attended St. Lawrence University where she received her B.S in Biology. It was there that she caught the eye of Tim and their courtship led to marriage just after graduation.
From there, Tim and Maria moved to Schenectady, NY. Maria taught high school biology, obtained her Master's in Education, and then became the financial and emotional support for Tim as he pursued his medical degree. Their daughter Emily was born and the family moved to Brevard in 1998. Two years later, they welcomed Jacob into the family.
Maria's passion was her family. She poured her heart and soul into the children, while supporting her husband in his profession. She loved to knit and her beautiful pieces will become family heirlooms. She loved nature, animals, adventure, and spontaneity. Daily, she would practice mindfulness, being present and kind to others, while at the same time acting as a fierce advocate for her family and friends. She leaves a massive void in our family and her friend circle but we are so grateful for what she has taught us about life. We know she is still with us.
There will be a Catholic funeral mass celebrating the life of Maria on Tuesday, 10am, July 2, 2024 at Sacred Heart Catholic Church followed by a reception. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that memorial donations be sent to the American Cancer Society or an animal rescue of your choice.
Online condolences may be left at .
Moody-Connolly Funeral Home and Crematory is caring for the family.
To plant trees in memory, please visit the Sympathy Store.
1 Entry
jessi johnson
March 27, 2025
I just found out about this from a very close friend of mine :( My name is Jessi Johnson (Bruno) and Mrs. Shea was my science/"Nature 1 & 2" teacher at Guilderland H.S in 10th grade (1992). Nature 1 was the first semester, and that was learning all about animals, and I believe Nature 2, the 2nd semester, was the 'gardening' part. There was a project that she had put the students together into groups for, and my friend Stan was my partner. He was (and still is) EXTREMELY smart and he did the 'research' part of the project, and I did the "physical" part. I cannot remember exactly what the project was about, but thanks to Stan, we both passed it. Stan received a 'golden shovel' award for best garden, and I received a 'good job' praise :D If my memory serves me correctly, I think I was the only student with the most 'weeds' in my garden, because I had way too many of them in my plot (I didn't tend to it like I should have). She was very understanding and kind and didn't go too crazy with me with taking off points for all the weeds!! To this day, I can't stand weeds in any garden that I see or come across!! Even though I just found out about this today from Stan, I actually cried when he told me. It's been close to a year that she has been gone, and I hope she is proud of me for "hating weeds" now <3 - Jessi J!
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181 South Caldwell St., Brevard, NC 28712
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