Gales Ferry - Michael James Hannan, 83, of Gales Ferry passed away at home surrounded by his family Aug. 27, 2021, after a short battle with cancer.
Michael was born July 6, 1938, in New York City, the only child of James and Eileen (Batterberry) Hannan, both originally of Ireland. He married the love of his life, Mary Lee Flynn, in Woodside, N.Y., Oct. 21, 1961. Michael earned a Bachelor of Business Administration degree from Manhattan College in 1961 and an MBA from New York University in 1965. Mike and Lee had three children, Michael, Elizabeth, and Matthew, before relocating to Gales Ferry in 1971, where Mike's career included stints as a Human Resources Manager at Yardney Electric in Pawcatuck and United Nuclear in Montville. He traveled often in his career and he and Lee enjoyed making use of his accumulation of frequent flyer miles to take an extended tour of Europe and the "Cradle of Civilization," including Greece, Italy, Egypt, and Turkey.
Not wanting to remain idle after retirement, Mike soon returned to work as "the oldest Junior Programmer" at Computer Sciences Corporation in New London, where he worked until his second retirement. He was a true Renaissance soul who will be remembered for his great sense of humor and his keen interest in such topics as history, astronomy, archaeology, genetic genealogy, meteorology, and philately. He also enjoyed working on cars and computers. He was devoted to his family, who knew him as their beloved Grumpo.
Michael was predeceased by his wife, Mary Lee in 2019; and son, Michael Joseph Hannan in 2020. He is survived by his daughter, Elizabeth and her husband James Kading of Pawcatuck; his son, Matthew and his wife Jenny (Lee) Hannan of Greenville, R.I.; his daughter-in-law, Shawna Zito-Hannan of Quaker Hill; his grandchildren, Tristan Kading of Jeffersonville, Vt.; Troy Hannan of Niantic; Emily Kading of Casco, Maine; Charlotte Kading of Johnson, Vt.; and Calin Hannan of Greenville, R.I.; his great-grandchildren, Torrin Michael Hannan and soon-to-arrive Seamus Michael Forte; his sister-in-law Patricia (Fred) Brune of Groton; and his nephew Alex Brune of West Haven.
At Michael's request, no memorial services will be held. Donations in his memory can be made to the Center for Hospice Care-Southeast Connecticut, 227 Dunham St., Norwich, CT 06360;
http://hartfordhealthcareathome.org/donate.
Published by The Day on Sep. 7, 2021.