Rita Ellen Horan

Rita was born in Forest Hills, NY, the youngest of eight siblings, to Mary Horan, a homemaker, and John Horan, a New York city public school teacher. She earned a bachelor’s degree and Masters in Special Education from Fairfield University and her Doctorate in Education from Teachers College at Columbia University.

She devoted her professional career to education. In 1977, she began working at IBM as a technical support representative helping clients - including the New York city School Board - install and apply classroom technology. After her marriage in 1983 to John W. Schoen and the birth of their children, the family moved to Riverside, CT where she was active in the local Parent Teachers Association.

She later returned to school to train as a medical assistant at Norwalk Community College, and then taught students and oversaw their coursework as Director, Medical Assistant Program.

After retiring from her education career in 2021, Rita enjoyed traveling, reading, spending time with friends and family and was an active member of the Warren Community Garden. She was a lifelong foodie who loved trying new restaurants and recipes and cooking a wide variety of cuisines.

In addition to her husband, Rita is survived by her daughter, Sarah Flynn (Paul Flynn), of Basel, Switzerland; her son, Matthew Schoen (Leslie Baggesen), of San Francisco; her grandchildren Grace and Fionn Flynn and her sisters Carol Deegan, Marilyn Schneider and Barbara Kuhn and many nieces, nephews and grandnieces and grandnephews.

A Memorial Service will be held at the First Congregational Church in Old Greenwich on Monday, Oct. 20th at 11am, followed by a reception at the church at noon.

In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made to The Little Guild animal rescue, 285 Sharon-Goshen Road, West Cornwall, CT 06796