Obituary of Maureen P. de Poortere

Maureen Philomena de Poortere died Saturday, April 4, 2020 after a brief illness at Morristown Medical Center. She was 84. Maureen was born on December 13th, 1935 in Manhattan, NYC to the late Kathleen Nolan and Thomas Merrigan. She was raised in Manhattan, attending Cathedral High School and Fordham University, before starting her career at Columbia Presbyterian Hospital. She married her husband Bobby of 59 years, and settled in Green Village NJ, excelling in the unsung career of motherhood before continuing her career in Pathology at Morristown Memorial Hospital. Maureen was a member of Christ the King Church in New Vernon, and also directed their religious education program. Maureen spent part of her free time as a Den Mother and ringing her cowbell at over two decades of Oratory basketball and baseball games. If this was not enough, Maureen’s real passion was Irish culture. She not only competed as a Ceili Dancer for The Peter Smith School of Irish Dancing, she promoted Irish culture along with her six sons. She was well known for raising money for a number of charities as well as entertaining the sick & infirmed at various health care facilities throughout the tri-state area. She even helped The Peter Smith School perform for audiences at Radio City Music Hall and Carnegie Hall. She could often be heard asking for her family’s “Catholic Word of Honor” administering Castor Oil, cautioning against “never having a day’s luck,” and advising her loved ones to “offer it up”. Maureen is survived by her sister Kathleen, her 6 sons, their wives, and 12 grandchildren. Her cowbell can be viewed at Oratory Prep, 1 Beverly Rd Summit NJ during school hours. Visitation will not be held to the public; however she will be remembered at a later date with a Funeral Mass at Christ the King Church, 16 Blue Mill Rd., New Vernon, NJ. A private interment will be at St Vincent’s Cemetery in Madison and in lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to The Church of Christ the King (https://churchofchristtheking.org/).