Therese M. McNally

8/8/1925 - 8/22/11

Therese LaVerne McCarthy McNally, born August 8, 1925 in Chicago, IL, died peacefully on August 22, 2011.

She was a devoted mother, a dedicated teacher and a gifted artist. A graduate of the Chicago Teacher’s College, she later earned a master’s degree in education from the University of Arizona. She taught elementary school and art at Fort Lowell School for more than two decades.

Mother was a skilled gardener who read everything the U of A extension offered and then made the desert bloom. She snipped cuttings and scooped up seed wherever she saw them. She found wonder in the natural world and art and shared that with her family and students.

She is survived by her children Therese Lee Petrey (Mrs. Ernest) of Cleveland Heights, OH, Kendra Shawne McNally of Tucson, and Leo John McNally Jr of Tucson, and grandchildren Ernest Quentin. Petrey III of Cincinnati, OH, and Charles Lee Gatliff Petrey of Athens, OH, and sister-in law Gloria McCarthy (Mrs. Maurice) of Tucson.

She was preceded in death by her father James Joseph McCarthy, Sr., and her mother Bridget Boyle McCarthy, both of Chicago; by her brothers James Joseph (“Joe”) McCarthy, Jr., and Maurice “Mickey“ McCarthy, and sisters Eileen McCarthy, Rita McCarthy, Dorothy Fitzgerald and Mary Miniat.

The family requests no flowers, but, if desired, contributions to NAMI Arizona, 5025 Washington St., Ste 112, Phoenix AZ 85034 or The Fund for Civility Respect and Understanding through the Community Foundation for Southern Arizona.

A funeral mass will be celebrated at St Cyril of Alexandria on Tuesday, August 30 at 10:30 a.m., followed by interment at East Lawn Palms Cemetery and a reception at Feast Restaurant, 3719 E. Speedway, Tucson. Funeral arrangements by Adair Funeral Home.