GROVELAND: Carole E. (Hickey) O’Neil, 67, passed away on Wednesday, January 23, 2013 surrounded by her devoted family. She was the wife of George J. O’Neil with whom she shared forty-eight loving years of marriage.
Born in Haverhill on May 23, 1945, she was the daughter of the late William T. and Catherine (Lawler) Hickey and the younger sister of the late Barbara (Hickey) Daniels. Carole was a resident of Groveland for the past forty years and had previously lived in Haverhill. She attended St. James Grammar School and was a graduate of St. James High School class of 1963.
She worked as a teaching assistant for several years at the Bagnall Elementary School in Groveland. She had previously worked at Vernon Plastics in Haverhill as a customer service representative for many years.
Carole found great comfort in her faith in God and the many blessings that she felt were bestowed upon her during her lifelong commitment to the Catholic Church. Her greatest joy was being a mother to her three sons and relished the role of “Grammy” to her eight wonderful grandsons. She enjoyed watching them grow and engaged in their childhood activities. The best times were when they just came over to “Grammys” to be with her, either alone or as part of the frequent family gatherings.
She lived an active life, spending time at the beach, relaxing with the family at Lake Winnipesaukee and traveling with her husband. Some of their favorite trips included Ireland, Florida, Canada, up-state New York and Aruba.
In addition to her husband, she is survived by her three devoted sons, Kevin P. O’Neil and his wife, Lynn, Brian T. O’Neil and his wife, Katherine all of Andover and Lieutenant Colonel Sean S. O’Neil and his wife, Amanda of Burke, VA; her eight wonderful grandsons, Daniel, Nathan, William, Jack, Alex, Brenden, Grady and Cormac; brother-in-law, Ralph Daniels of Tewksbury; four loving nieces, Laurie Medrick, Kim Olney, Sherry Livsey and Christine Daniels; sister-in-law, Patricia (O’Neil) Pike of Haverhill and her family as well as the large extended family of her late brothers-in-law, William E. and John P. “Jackie” O’Neil and her sister-in-law, Mary Ellen (O’Neil) Eason.
A funeral Mass for Carole will be celebrated on Monday in the St. John the Baptist Church, 114 Lincoln Ave., Haverhill at 10 a.m. Visiting hours will be held on Sunday in the Linnehan-Grondin Funeral Home, 129 Kenoza Avenue, Haverhill from 3 – 7 p.m. Relatives and friends are cordially invited to attend. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy may be made in Carole’s memory to the Merrimack Valley Hospice, 360 Merrimack St., Bldg. 9 Lawrence, MA 01843 Interment will be held in the St. James Cemetery, Haverhill.