Robert Joseph Molloy M.D.

Robert Joseph Molloy, 90, of Harwich, MA., formerly of West Hartford, CT, beloved husband of Lorraine Abbott Molloy, died quietly on September 5, 2014, in Harwich. Born at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford, CT, Bob was the youngest child of William P. and Katherine (Daly) Molloy. He grew up in West Hartford and attended William H. Hall High School. He was a graduate and loyal alumnus of The College of the Holy Cross in Worcester, MA (Class of 1946), and Cornell Medical College in New York, NY (Class of 1948), where he was elected to Alpha Omega Alpha Honor Medical Society. Bob was a veteran of World War II and the Korean Conflict. He enlisted in the United States Navy as a Holy Cross freshman; his medical internship at Yale New Haven Hospital and his residency in internal medicine at St. Francis Hospital in Hartford were interrupted by active duty as a Navy medical officer from 1950 to 1952. Bob’s medical career in private practice in Hartford and as a member of the Department of Medicine at St. Francis spanned almost 40 years, from 1954 through his retirement in 1993. During much of that time, as a physician on the teaching staffs of St. Francis and the University of Connecticut Health Center, he was actively involved in the training of interns and residents. He loved teaching. At St. Francis, he was instrumental in the development of renal services and hemodialysis and, with Dr. D. Dillon Reidy, brought the first kidney machine to the hospital in 1958. He served on numerous hospital and departmental committees, as chairman of the medical staff’s executive committee and as its president, and on the hospital’s board of directors. He was a fellow of the American College of Physicians. Always a student, Bob read often and deeply. He had a special interest in history, particularly of the American Revolutionary and Civil Wars. He delighted in summer vacations with family on the Connecticut shore and Cape Cod. He was a lifelong tennis player with a wicked serve. In retirement, Bob became an avid golfer at Cranberry Valley Golf Club in Harwich and enjoyed the fellowship of the local Kiwanis Club. With all Molloys, he shared a love of gardening. His greatest joy was his family. In addition to Lorraine, his loving wife of 63 years, he leaves their eight children: Ann (Kenneth Stillman) of Northborough, Robert (Kristine Schmidt) of Kenai, AK, Katherine Spencer-Molloy (Frank) of Tariffville, CT, Jean Palin (Michael) of New Britain, CT, Stephen (Patricia) of Avon, CT, Elizabeth (Charles Gill) of Omaha, NE, Peter (Laura Powell) of Penngrove, CA, and Gregory (Cheryl Langway) of Middleborough. He also leaves eleven grandchildren: Sarah and David Stillman, Lily Schmidt, Robert Spencer-Molloy, Liam and Claire Palin, Michael Macelletti, Allison and John Gill, and Hannah and Emma Molloy. Also surviving him are his sister, Helen Molloy, of Bloomfield, CT, his brother-in-law, Ronald Abbott, and Ronald’s wife, Marjorie, of Harwich Port, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins of the Abbott, Daly, Lacy, and Molloy families for whom he felt great affection. His beloved brother, William D. Molloy, died in December 2013. Another sister, Jane Molloy, also predeceased him in 1986. Calling hours are from 4 to 7 pm on Thursday, September 11, at Morris, O’Connor & Blute Funeral Home, 678 Main Street, Harwich. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 a.m. on Friday, September 12, in Holy Trinity Church, 246 Main Street (Route 28), West Harwich. Friends are invited to join Bob’s family for committal services in Mount St Benedict Cemetery in Bloomfield, CT, on Saturday, September 13, at 12:00 noon. Gifts in Bob’s memory may be made to Saint Francis Foundation, 95 Woodland Street, Hartford, CT 06105, The College of the Holy Cross, Advancement Office, One College Street, Worcester, MA 01610, or The Family Pantry , 133 Queen Anne Road, Harwich MA 02645.

Robert Joseph Molloy M.D.

May 7, 1924 - September 5, 2014