I always loved Aunt Eileen as a child and as mom's sister she was special to me. Our holiday visits to Long Island always were adventures and a little scary. It was in New York! But Aunt Eileen always made the time fun, and eating at the kid's table in the kitchen was a riot! 
As we all got older and she moved to Arizona our communication was less frequent but still she was Aunt Eileen. She always remembered our daughter Leah's birthday with a card and we loved her for that.
When mom was dying in 1986 she did what Aunt Eileen does, and she came to see her and say goodbye. It was a great comfort having her there.
We all visited her in 2004 during a trip to the Grand Canyon and she welcomed us and got to see and know Leah. 
We kept in touch and I will always love her. Her kind, loving spirit and strength in the face of illness inspires me to a higher purpose. She knew and loved Jesus, as do I, and so I have the hope of seeing Aunt Eileen again.
Our deepest condolences and sympathies to our west coast family. Love from the east coast,
Neil, Sonia and Leah.

Please accept my sincere sympathies on the death of Eileen. My father Philip Mc Dermott was her first cousin and he often spoke of her late father Philip Farley, his uncle.
                                    Larry Mc Dermott (Carrickmacross. Ireland.)

   Eileen was my neighbor in Tucson.  I have known Her for many years. She was always friendly and very helpful.  A wonderful Mom, Wife and Friend.  As other people already described Her, She was a roll model of how to live by God's standards, not this world's.  I will miss Her. 
    Eileen, may You rest in peace ![(R.I.P.), Requiescat in pace]

I don't remember exactly when I physically met Eileen, probably when I shared a house in San Francisco with Terry and a bunch of other folks.  After that, we'd exchange holiday cards now & then, and after a while, we became Facebook Friends, which was fun & amazed me a bit, that an older person had the wherewithal to do that. She was a sweet, caring & loving person.

I remember that day in 1974 when I was walking (or riding my bicycle with Alan riding on the back) to St. Pius, and I noticed a new family moving in one street over from our Adams Street home.  I introduced myself to Eileen found out we had children near the same age, she was Catholic and of course I invited her to St.Pius and to come over for tea.  She joined our "St. Pius Dialogue Group" as it was called then and the rest is history.  She was soul mate forever after, even after we moved from Tucson in 1981.  She was that comfortable type friend that regardless how long since you had talked or seen each other, you picked up like it was yesterday.  I'll miss her.

Rest well Eileen. Say hi to mom for me :)

Bob Garitano's Aunt Eileen was so kind to me when I was a member of her extended family and afterward too...a gentle, kind, soul....I enjoyed her company, and she will be missed, particularly  by her close knit family.  Rita Robinson (aka Rita Garitano)

Remembrance of Eileen

This is a day to remember Eileen for the free spirit, fun loving person she was.  She doesn't want you to be sad or cry..OR feel sorry for her. Eileen had a good run as they say. She was a trooper. Raising 5 tough kids wasn't easy. She loved good food, SWEETS, road trips, picnics, word games, bible studies and BIG SMILES. 

Even though in the past few years she may have suffered, she still had a great sense of humor. She laughed and made you all laugh as well. She would always put your problems or your pain before hers. She was a true angel on earth. 

She appreciated your kindness and your friendship. Given a chance she would crush you at scrabble or cards. 

She was & ALWAYS will be a beautiful MOTHER and FRIEND to anyone who met her. 

WE LOVE YOU MOM, from your tough kids, your extended family and all your good friends.

Like her big brothers, Eileen ventured far beyond her parochial upbringing to embrace the world and all its diversity.  She brought a big-heartedness and generosity to her faith, too--she was absolutely a Pope Francis Catholic.   But I know she remained a New York girl in her essence.  My most vivid memory of her is pure New York, calling for Terry to come in out of the cold, "you're gonna get a soah troat!"  Rest in peace...

Sweet Eileen, it has only been a few weeks and your are truly missed.  Manuel and I were so blessed that your family allowed us to tag along and have you as a part of our lives.  Your memorial was fantastic and I know that you must have been watching over because of how great it was.  You were a great mom and roll model for your kids and Manuel & I.  We can only hope to have such a caring, giving life as yours.  I hope that you are flying with the angels with NO cares and that Heaven is everything you expected and more.  Until we meet again.  Manuel & Cheryl Rivera


    Eileen Cunniff was born Eileen Farley in Manhattan, N.Y. in 1924. Both of her parents were Irish immigrants who raised their four children in working class neighborhoods on the Upper West Side.
   When I think of her childhood, growing up in the midst of The Great Depression, and her teenage years during WWII with two of her older brothers in the Army, I can see where she developed the toughness and resourcefulness to raise five children of her own and carry on to the ripe old age of ninety-one.
   Eileen saw and experienced a lot of things in her life, but she was a quiet soul, selfless; her devotion was always to family, friends, others. You had to sit and talk with her for a while before she would reveal some little anecdote from her past, like how, as children, they'd climb to the roof of their building in summer and peel off strips of soft tar for chewing gum, or how she and her brother Fran would go to the Metropolitan Opera House and sit way up top in the cheapest seats, or how, as one of two girls in the family, she was expected to stay in the background and not aspire to anything like a college education or a work career.
   For the past few days we've been pouring over old family photographs, and I've been reminded of what a beauty she was as a young woman.  Eileen had an elegance, style, and peacefulness even then that she carried with her throughout her life.
   After her husband, Walter, died in 1991, Eileen opened up an expansive new chapter in her life. She traveled to Mexico, Istanbul, and Barcelona with friends. Our sister, Terry, and I went to Ireland with her to look up relatives on the west coast, and then crossed the channel to Paris and other regions of France. She loved to travel, flying out on her own to San Francisco to visit my sister and I, or to Massachusetts to spend time in the summer with our brother and his wife, Phil and Carole, and Eileen's granddaughter, Jessica.
   All through these years Eileen continued her volunteer work with the St. Pius community, hospice, and The Ladies Boutique.
   Three years ago she was diagnosed with cancer, had a major surgery and displayed her customary tenacity and resolve in dealing with its aftermath. Those were difficult years for Eileen and we, her children, were as grateful as she was for the extended period of time that we were given to be together and share our love.
   Eileen really walked the Christian life. For her, faith was something true and real, an everyday practice in which she showed how a simple life, based on kindness, acceptance, and a good sense of humor can make a huge difference in the lives around her.
   Let's carry that memory of Eileen in our own hearts and vow to leave this world, like she did, a better place.

Dear Mom: Thanks to you.

Not just for giving me the dark meat chicken when (I only just found out) that was your preference too. You taught me what it means to be selfless in this gesture and in so many others. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

Not just for the lasagna and strawberry shortcake that you made by hand for my birthday on each and every January 11 for as long as I can remember. With that you taught me to understand that in your house I was special. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

That gesture and so many others has made me the man I am today. Now, in my house I tell my daughter I love you and there's nothing you can do about that. That sentiment comes from you. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

Not just for letting me decide when the Christmas tree came down. With that you taught me there was something I held territory over. "Philip decides". Even from the age of 5: "Philip decides if the tree comes down on the Epiphany or on his birthday". That was a big deal for me. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

Not just for trusting me enough to hold my new sister on the path to the front door of our house on the day you came home from the hospital with her in September 1960. With that, you taught me I was trusted. Trusted with a life. "Watch her neck". "Careful". I was a man at the age of seven. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

For showing me the meaning of graciousness even if my manners sometimes fail to convey excellence. I watch you and I know where my standard for treating others people should be. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

For showing me the meaning of grace even if my movement lately frequently fails to comport elegance. I learn from you how I'd like to manage myself over the next decade and more. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

For showing me the meaning of grit even if my courage in the face of hardship is ephemeral. I learn from you what it tenacity means. Thanks to you.

Thanks to you.

God Bless (me) and keep (me) in the palm of his hand until we meet again, because, surely, you are already there.

EILEEN CUNNIFF'S FINAL HOMECOMING 

Eileen is at peace. She's filled with joy even more so than that joy she experienced here on earth with all God's blessings. It is we who are left who will miss her but we can gain much inspiration from the life that Eileen led.
My husband and I and our little Bible Study group of which Eileen was a member, have been meeting for almost 20 years. We've gotten to know and love each other very well and I'd like to share with you some of what we have learned and loved about Eileen.  

In preparing this talk, I was trying to think of words that embody Eileen and the life that she led. I was inspired by something I read on the wall in Fr. Harry's office entitled Holiness. When I read it, I thought that really is a good description of Eileen. It was a beautiful passage and I'm going to borrow its format to convey the attributes that our group and I use to describe our experience of Eileen.    

Eileen was not holy because she was kind. Eileen was kind because she was holy. I remember that Eileen brought the gift of her time to a friend who was a shut-in and they played Scrabble together.

Eileen was not holy because she was thoughtful. Eileen was thoughtful because she was holy. Eileen invited her friend, Ellen, who lived alone to join our group thinking maybe her friend would enjoy the interaction with others.

Eileen was not holy because she prayed. She prayed because she was holy. Eileen came to our Bible Study each week with intercessory prayers.   

Eileen was not holy because she was wise. She was wise because she was holy. She shared wonderful insights about the scriptures we read together. 

Eileen was not holy because she had a relationship with God. She had a relationship with God because she was holy. Her faith was very important to her. She accepted the trials she faced in this world knowing that God was always with her.  

Eileen was not holy because she was courageous. She was courageous because she was holy. Even when Eileen lost 70% of her tongue because of cancer and even though she could never eat again because she could not swallow, Eileen did not complain. She didn't question why this happened to her. She accepted the hardship and the challenge of having to learn how to talk again.   

So, we friends and family who are left here on earth will miss Eileen but let's not forget the inspiration of holiness she's left with us. Eileen was a model of how to live by God's standards and not the world's. She was the model of holiness.

OBITUARIO

Eileen T Cunniff

24 agosto, 1924 – 18 septiembre, 2015

East Lawn Palms Mortuary & Cemetery

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