Obituary for Melrose Resident Phyllis (Callahan) Hasey

[Editor's Note: The following obituary for Melrose Resident Phyllis Joan (Callahan) Hasey derives from the Gately Funeral Home website.]

Phyllis Joan (Callahan) Hasey, 93, of Melrose, passed away peacefully of natural causes on Aug. 15, 2013 surrounded by her four daughters. 

Born in Saugus on Dec. 4, 1919, Phyllis graduated from Somerville High School and studied her lifelong passion, art, at Massachusetts College of Art. After marrying Hubert C. Hasey, Jr. in 1942, Phyllis used her college training at an MIT laboratory, working as a wartime graphic artist while "Bert" served in the army.

In 1946, Phyllis and Bert moved to Melrose, where Phyllis became president of the Melrose Highlands Women's Club; a leader in Campfire Girls; an officer of the Roosevelt School PTA; and a longtime member of the Reading, Newburyport, and Lynnfield Art Associations. 

Phyllis had a very active professional life, culminating in a fulfilling career at Mass College of Art as a registrar with a smile on her face for anyone who entered her office. She continued to give and take art classes well into retirement, had several art shows and won numerous awards for her portraits, landscapes and still lifes. Of all her accomplishments, she was proudest of her four daughters (Pamela J. Hasey Craig of Bedford, NH; Wendy J. Guirola-Tucker of Lexington, KY; Candace Hasey Keefe of Newport, RI; and Cynthia Woodward Hasey of Stoneham), 15 grandchildren and 14 great-grandchildren. Phyllis was predeceased by her loving husband of 57 years, Hubert C. Hasey, Jr. 

Visiting were held Tuesday, Aug. 20 from 4-8 p.m. at Gately Funeral Home, 79 W. Foster St, Melrose. A gathering was held at Gately Funeral Home on Wednesday, Aug. 21 at 8:45 a.m., followed by funeral mass at 10 a.m. in the Most Blessed Sacrament Church, 1155 Main St. in Wakefield and burial in Sleepy Hollow Cemetery, Concord.  

In lieu of flowers, donations in Phyllis' name to Hope Funds for Cancer Research, 226 Bellevue Ave Newport, RI 02840 or the Hope Funds for Cancer Research website.