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Obituary for Leo Vincent Donohue
Leo V. Donohue , age 86, formerly of Avon, Connecticut, died Friday, May 20, 2011 at Bethel Health Care Center, Bethel, after a short illness. He was the son of the late John and Margaret (Mara) Donohue of West Hartford, CT where he was born and raised. CT. Mr. Donohue retired as Democratic State Auditor of Public Accounts, a position he held for 25 years, in 1992. He was employed in various positions by the State of Connecticut for 47 years and served as Commissioner of Finance and Control under Governor John Dempsey. He was a member of the State of Connecticut Executive Committee on Human Rights and Opportunities, Chairman of the Connecticut Personnel Policy Board and a member of the Tri-State Transportation Commission. He was an avid fan of the Boston Red Sox and served as President of the World Series Club of Hartford. He was predeceased by his wife, Barbara Troy Donohue and is survived by a son, Christopher T. Donohue, a daughter-in-law, Susanne Nobert Donohue and two granddaughters, Katherine and Margaret, all of Sandy Hook. Leo was also predeceased by his siblings, John and Thomas Donohue, Elizabeth Booth and Marion Donohue. Friends may call at the Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main Street, Newtown, CT, Tuesday May 24th between the hours of 4pm and 8.
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Life Story for Leo Vincent Donohue
Leo V. Donohue, who as state auditor spent nearly 25 years uncovering fiscal abuses in government, died Friday. He was 86.Donohue was the Democratic auditor from 1967 to 1992, except for two years that he spent as chief of the Department of Finance and Control.
Both Donohue and the Republican state auditor at the time, Henry J. Becker, were a staple of state government, taking office and retiring at the same time. Donohue told a reporter in 1992 that his wife dubbed the two, who worked in adjacent offices, "Goodie Four Shoes."
During their tandem careers, Donohue and Becker were credited with finding financial abuses at Southern and Central Connecticut state universities, and at the state departments of mental retardation, human services, housing and education.
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"He had a passion for good government, and he especially had a passion for the state of Connecticut," said Charles F.J. Morse, a former political writer for The Courant who would later become a speech writer for Gov. Lowell P. Weicker Jr.
Morse on Friday remembered Donohue as being "ethically strong — a person for whom you had great respect and an assurance that what he was doing was the right thing."
Morse, in a 1985 column, recounted that Donohue first caught the eye of legendary Democratic Party boss John M. Bailey while playing shortstop in the Hartford Twilight League, "always carrying a rule book around in his uniform pocket," gaining him the nickname "Rulebook Donohue."
Gov. Dannel P. Malloy and Lt. Gov. Nancy Wyman on Friday released a statement mourning Donohue's death. It said, in part: "Leo was a man who was truly committed to the democratic process, and ensuring that taxpayer dollars were efficiently and wisely spent. He dedicated his career to improving the transparency and accessibility of state government."
Donohue, who grew up in West Hartford, lived for many years in Avon. He died at Bethel Health Care Center in Bethel.
Calling hours will be Tuesday from 4 to 8 p.m. at Honan Funeral Home, 58 Main St., Newtown.
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