Peggy Wood (McGonnigal) Hassan

Peggy Wood (McGonnigal) Hassan, age 91, of Hingham and Cohasset died peacefully at home on Monday, May 30, 2016 surrounded by her loving family. Peggy was the beloved wife of the late Samuel Hassan and a loving and devoted mother to her five children: Linda M. Hassan and Tom Moore of Canterbury, NH., David A. Hassan and Jane of Cohasset, Samuel Peter Hassan and Donna Denaro of Cohasset and Medford, James A. Hassan and Christina of Cohasset, and Aaron R. Hassan and Meredith of Cohasset. Grandmother of Colin Moore of Brighton, Brett Hassan Seidman (Aneela Manori) of Sherman Oaks, CA., Leslie Hassan-Seidman  (Nathan Huber) of Santa Rosa, CA., and Emily Wood Hassan Seidman (Mario Santana) of Jersey City, NJ; Joshua Hassan (Julie) of Cohasset, Elizabeth Hassan of Hanson, and Sarah Belz (Erik) of NYC.; Katharyn and James, and Aaron  of Cohasset. Peggy is predeceased by grandsons, Benjamin and Thomas Zubricki of Medford, and granddaughter Christy Arnold. She is survived by five great-grandchildren: Joshua and Samuel of Cohasset, Victoria and Mathew Zubricki of Medford and Nova Hassan-Huber of Santa Rosa.

In addition her husband, Peggy was predeceased by her parents, Thomas and Marion (Sweet) McGonnigal, and by three siblings: Thomas McGonnigal, Janet Boone, and Susan McGonnigal. She is survived by her sister, Helen Schrier of Grand Rapids, MI., by her brother Alan McGonnigal (Lillian) of Bradford, NH. and by many nieces and nephews.

Peggy was known for her warm smile, her open heart, and her keen sense of intuition. She was generous and gracious with her time, energy and faithful support.  As an inspiration to many, her legacy includes an especially strong belief in and commitment to ‘fighting’ for peace and social justice, and her life was guided by a strong sense of purpose and passion. As one of the first women to work in the drafting department at the Fore River Shipyard (where she met Sam, the love of her life), she exemplified her “girls can do anything boys can do” belief, and “if you don’t like something then do something about it” inspired her to work tirelessly to not only elect the first openly gay member of Congress, but to also put her feet where her heart was and at the age of 80 was among those who held signs of protest (“No Blood for Oil”) on the town common. One of her nephews described her as a feminist and a progressive long before these words were common in our vernacular.

She was proud of her Scottish heritage and spent years researching her family history.  She was delighted by her membership in the Mayflower Society and created notebooks for each of her children that trace her Wood and Sweet family genealogy back to 1278.

She will be fondly remembered for her great home cooking, her love of reading, her storytelling, her beautiful voice, her love of ginger marmalade, and her passion and unending love for her family. See ‘ya later alligator, in a while crocodile. Mumma/Gramma/Auntie/Friend will be loved always and will be missed forever.

Visiting hours Thursday, June 2, 2016 from 4-7 pm in McNamara-Sparrell Funeral Home, 160 So. Main St. (across from St. Anthony Church), Cohasset. A Memorial Service will be held on Friday, June 3, 2016 at 2 pm in the First Parish Unitarian Church, 23 No. Main St., Cohasset, MA. 02025. Interment Private.

In lieu of flowers, donations to honor Peggy may be made to the South Shore Conservatory, 1 Conservatory Drive, Hingham, MA. 02043

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