Teresa (McGowan) Heavey

Teresa Katherine (McGowan) Heavey was born in Waterville, ME on February 5, 1932, the daughter of the late John H. McGowan, Sr. and Claire (Connell) Denton. She graduated from Dana Hall School in 1951 and Brown University with honors in 1955. She attended the Radcliffe Publishing Course and later earned a master’s degree in English Literature from Boston College.

Terry worked in publishing at Little, Brown and Company and at TV Guide Magazine. After raising her daughter, she returned to the workforce, first writing grants at Harvard Dental School and then managing an oncology practice at Brigham and Women’s Hospital. When she retired to Chatham, she worked part time as a medical transcriptionist at Cape Cod Hospital and served as the secretary for the Brown Club of Cape Cod.

Terry will be remembered for her humor, generosity, loyalty, and iconic style. She and her husband Jack opened their house to, in her words, “casts of thousands” and entertained with ease. She prided herself in being a fierce patient advocate, and organized the health care for her friends and family. She had a wealth of sound advice.

Terry is survived by her daughter Lisa Heavey Evans and her son-in-law Pete Evans of Providence, RI. She was the doting grandmother of Katie Goldman and her husband Samuel Goldman of Barrington, RI, Kelly Evans and her husband Patrick Lapage of Boston, MA, and Sara Evans and her husband Nathan Myers of Boston, MA. She was the proud great-grandmother of Harriet, Margaret, and Peter Goldman and John and Georgeanna Lapage. She also leaves behind her sister Rosemary Phillips and brother David McGowan and many nieces, nephews, grand-nieces and grand-nephews and her lifelong friend, Nancy Coveney. Terry’s husband of 57 years John Heavey, Jr. and her brothers John McGowan, Jr. and Robert McGowan preceded her in death.

A Mass of Christian burial will be celebrated at 10:00 AM on Friday, August 30th at Holy Redeemer Church, 57 Highland Ave, Chatham, MA. Internment will immediately follow at South Chatham Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Make-A-Wish Foundation of America.