Dennis Aloysius McLaughlin, father of three and grandfather of six, died on August 30, days after suffering a stroke while on vacation at the Jersey Shore. It was little more than a year since his wife of 49 years, Gladys Garey McLaughlin, had passed away. He was seventy-five years old.

Born on June 21, 1941, the Feast of Saint Aloysius, in Elyria, Ohio, near Cleveland, Denny was the seventh of nine children. He went to Catholic school and worked as a caddy to earn money. He thus developed a fondness for playing golf that never left him. Days before his passing, he played a round with his son-in-law, besting the younger man by a couple of strokes.

Denny worked as a grocery clerk to pay his own tuition to high school. After graduating high school, Denny joined the Army reserves where it was quickly found that there was one thing he didn't learn in high school: how to spell his middle name. He later went into sales, working many successful years for Smith Corona, Sharp Electronics and at Inflatable Packaging in Sandy Hook.

He married Gladys Garey McLaughlin, a graduate of Youngstown State, who had also come from a big family. They raised three daughters, Elizabeth, Michele, and Rosalie. Eventually he became grandfather to Brady, Grace, Brendan, Adira, Luke, and Sean. Five-year-old Luke, who has Down Syndrome, felt an especially strong bond with his grandpa, following him around, always wanting to be picked up or held.

In retirement, Dennis became an active volunteer in Newtown, where we had lived since 1979. He was a proud member of the Newtown Lions Club, for whose annual auction of a classic Mustang he enthusiastically sold raffle tickets. He also relished the chance to bring his grandchildren to watch the Lions-sponsored duck race each spring.

The last week of life Dennis spent with his daughters and their families in Ocean City, New Jersey, where he had vacationed with his wife Gladys and their daughters and then with their grandchildren as well. It was a family tradition that Gladys had treasured and urged him to continue.

In addition to his children and grandchildren, Denny is survived by his sisters, Mary Kenny, Agnes Blackley, and Stella Joyce; and his brothers Charles and Bill McLaughlin. His beloved wife of 49 years, Gladys Garey McLaughlin; sister Ann McLaughlin, SND; and his brothers Gerard and James McLaughlin predeceased him.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Saturday, September 3, at 11 am, at St Joseph’s Church, 163 Whisconier Road, Brookfield. Friends may call at the Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown, on Saturday from 9 to 10:30 am. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Newtown Lions Club Foundation/Sandy Hook Elementary Fund,newtownlions.org/pages/SHEF/shef.htm.

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