Barbara Cunningham

Barbara (Connor) Cunningham (RN), 83, beloved wife of Robert P. Cunningham, of West Hartford, died Friday (April 12, 2013) at St. Francis Hospital. Born in Torrington, the daughter of the late Raymond and Julia (Rosse) Connor, she was raised in Torrington and has made her home in West Hartford for almost 50 years. Barbara graduated from Torrington High School in 1947 and St. Francis Hospital School of Nursing in 1950. She began her nursing career at the State of Connecticut Veterans Hospital in Rocky Hill. She then worked for various nursing homes, most notably St. Mary Home in West Hartford, and retired from Connecticut Transit where she ran their blood pressure clinic. She was a communicant of St. Thomas the Apostle Church and was active in their Altar Guild and Women’s Club. She also volunteered for Meals on Wheels and St. Agnes Guild. She devoted her life to making this world a better place and raising a family with love and laughter. Besides her husband of almost 60 years, she is survived by her six children, Robert “Rusty” Cunningham and his wife Wendy of Burlington, Mary Avery and her husband Richard of Tolland, John Cunningham of Coventry, Jane Derrick and her husband Douglas of Lexington, SC, Peter Cunningham and his wife Susan of Glastonbury, Paul Cunningham of Reykjavik, Iceland; six grandchildren, Julie and her husband Pawel Lisek, Lisa Cunningham, Paul and Danielle Ricciardi, Kelly and Holly Cunningham; two great grandchildren, Joshua and Mikayla Lisek; and two sisters, Florence Letourneau and Judith Connor both of Maryville, TN. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Monday (April 15, 2013) at 10:00 a.m. at St. Thomas the Apostle Church, 872 Farmington Ave., West Hartford. Burial will follow in Fairview Cemetery, West Hartford. Calling hours are Sunday (April 14, 2013) from 5-8 p.m., at the Molloy Funeral Home, 906 Farmington Ave., West Hartford. Donations in her memory to honor her lifetime of service and giving may be made to Guild of St. Agnes Home (P.O. Box 330-581, West Hartford, CT, 06110) or St. Labre Indian School, Ashland, MT 59004 (www.stlabre.org).