Dennis Michael Cooney, passed away surrounded by his wife, daughters, and life-long friend, on January 8, 2024.
Dennis was born on Friday the 13th of August 1943, the son of Maria (née Hatala), an immigrant of Slovakia (formerly Czechoslovakia) and Thomas P. Cooney, of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Dennis grew up in Jamaica, Queens, and attended St. Mary Magdalene parochial school in Springfield Gardens. In his youth, he traversed multiple city lines, traveling to Brooklyn to attend Bishop Loughlin Memorial High School, where he graduated in 1961. He was a proud graduate of the City College of New York, where he received a bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1965. Dennis was a Vietnam Veteran. He served in an intelligence unit of the Army as an aerial photograph interpreter from 1967-68 and was stationed in Biên Hòa during the Tet Offensive. When Dennis returned to the States, he moved to New Fairfield, Connecticut, where he spent summers as a child swimming the length of Ball Pond. He used the GI Bill to pursue an advanced degree in school psychology, graduating with a master’s from Southern Connecticut State University. In 1972, he began what would span his professional career, as a school psychologist in the New Fairfield public school system, where he enjoyed making meaningful contributions as part of the student services team. In the early 1980s he furthered his education to earn a sixth year certificate.
Dennis had a fondness of nature, canoeing, wilderness camping, tinkering with cars, history, and reading. He loved his family and all their pets. He was also proud to be a member of the New Fairfield Veterans Honor Guard.
In 2007, he was diagnosed with a rare lung disease, interstitial pulmonary fibrosis, and received a lung transplant in the summer of 2012. With the support of his family and friends, he fought a long and hard battle with that, and subsequent illnesses.
He is survived by his wife Anne (née McCarthy), and two children, Bridget and Cailean. Dennis and his family appreciate the many excellent doctors and healthcare professionals that have been there for him throughout the years.
Visiting hours will be from 2 - 5pm on Sunday, January 14, 2024 at Green Funeral Home, 57 Main St., Danbury. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11am on Monday, January 15th at St. Edward the Confessor Church, New Fairfield. The interment will take place at a later date to be announced.
Donations may be made in his honor to the Pulmonary Fibrosis Foundation and the Ridgefield Visiting Nurse Association.
