Josephine (“Jo”) Maher, 91, died on Sunday, November 1, 2020. The daughter of Catherine and Edward McDonald, Jo was a proud lifelong resident of the Bronx, NY. She was a graduate of St. Augustine Elementary School and St. Cathedral High School. Jo married Thomas F. Maher (d. 1983) at St. Thomas Aquinas Church in 1953.
A beloved mother, Grammy, and GiGi, Jo is survived by her sister, Maureen Canavan (Jim); four children, JoAnne (Bruce) Courage, Kevin (Kathryn) Maher, Dennis Maher, and Mary T (Kevin) Maher; six grandchildren, Jacquelynn (Sean) Hobbs, Kourtney Maher, Brittany Maher, Alexandra (Michael) Cronin, Richard Courage, and John Paul Maher; and two great-grandsons, Kieran and Liam Hobbs. She joins her beloved brother, Edmond; son, Thomas, Jr.; and grandson, Kevin in eternal rest with the Lord.
Once described by her coworkers as “the china teacup among all the coffee mugs,” Jo worked at Manhattan College Library from 1971 until her retirement twenty-five years later. She could frequently be found checking out students’ books at the Circulation Desk or researching materials for faculty members, that is when she wasn’t swapping some gossip with “the gals” in the break room.
Never happier than when she was getting some good sun, if she wasn’t making her way up 238th street to Johnson Ave., Jo enjoyed her many girls’ trips to the beach with her dear friends, at Spring Lake or Breezy Point, or traveling near and far with the St. Margaret’s Leisure Club.
Funeral Mass will be on Friday, November 6, at St. Gabriel’s Church. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to Manhattan College Manhattan College Giving, Hunters’ Syndrome Society Hunters Donations , or your local healthcare organization.