Veronica McCarthy

Veronica McCarthy, Irish eyes were smiling in heaven on Wednesday morning as the McCarthy and Sullivan clans joyfully welcomed one of their own, Veronica McCarthy. First in line at the pearly gates were her handsome and much missed husband, Matt Sullivan; her parents Bill and Mary McCarthy; and her brother, Peter.

After valiantly fighting a 13-year battle with metastasized breast cancer, Veronica gently drifted off in her own bed shortly after midnight.

Grieving her loss, but happy that she is at peace, are her extended family, including her cherished sister and best friend, Lynn Aurelio, her loving brother-in-law, Rome, and their three sons, whom Veronica endlessly adored, Romey (Lotta and darling Simone), Michael and Zack. She also leaves her beloved brother John (Christina) and his two daughters, Alexandria and Sarah; brother Patrick; brother Bill (Jane and children); and sister Michael Mary Scafani.

She will also be missed by her cherished stepchildren Sean (Tammy) Sullivan, Kellie Sullivan and Megan (Bryan) Robledo and her much loved grandchildren Xavier, Shannon, Benjamin, Ashley and Christopher. Also her nephew, Michael Thomas (Anna) Scafani and their daughters, Maria and Giuliana, and nephew Victor Paul Scafani.

Over the years, Veronica made many friends and treasured each of them until the end.
She had lifelong friends from her old neighborhood, especially the Shea family. She had a large circle of friends from St. John's Ursuline H.S., including Carolyn Eriksson and her favorite teacher, Sister Maura Murphy, OSU. She also formed extraordinary friendships during her 30 years as a friend of Bill W. She made long-lasting friends through work, too, especially with Greg and Heidi Ingram who provided her with such loving care and support during her final months. Their help was invaluable. Their two sons Ryan and Conner were like grandsons to Matt and Veronica over the years and they loved them dearly.

Veronica grew up in the Crocker Amazon district, just blocks away from the world famous Mel's Drive-In. After graduating from high school, she worked at a variety of secretarial jobs, quickly moving up the ladder until she broke through the glass ceiling on Wall Street and became a registered stock broker. She worked for several brokerage firms, such as Bear Stearns, The Shemano Group and Empire Financial. She was currently a Vice President, Private Client Group, with Wunderlich Securities in San Francisco's financial district.

Veronica eagerly anticipated the annual McCarthy/Sullivan gathering at the Russian River. It was always the highlight of her year. This warm and friendly family, however, turned into an aggressive, competitive pack as they played the grand finale, men vs. women, cut-throat game of charades. She also loved New York City and treasured her trips there with Matt.

She was a devout Catholic, a silent and generous contributor to many causes, an avid reader and the most fashionably, well dressed woman any of us knew. Most of all, she devoted her life to family, friends and sponsees. She deeply loved each and every one of them, felt their pain, shared their joys and reminded them frequently that "it's not fingers or toes" and "there are no big deals". She will be deeply missed!

The viewing and vigil service will be held Tuesday evening at 7:00pm with visitation starting at 6:00pm. The funeral mass will be held Wednesday morning at 11:00am. Both services will be at St. Mary Star of the Sea Church, 180 Harrison Ave., Sausalito.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made, in her memory, to the American Cancer Society, 601 Montgomery St., Suite 650, San Francisco, CA 94111.