Mona Schmid Cavanagh was born on February 21, 1917 to John Henry Schmid and Miriam Veronica Brady Schmid in Brooklyn Heights, New York. She had three sisters, Miriam, Joan, and Hope. Mona attended Packer Collegiate Institute and was graduated from the Convent of the Sacred Heart, Maplehurst. She received her college degree from Manhattanville College.

Mona married Carroll John Cavanagh in February, 1943. They had four children. She is survived by three children, Monica, Deirdre, and Christopher, her 9 grandchildren and 8 great grandchildren.  She was predeceased by her husband, her three sisters, and her first-born son, Carroll.

As a longtime resident of Norwalk, Mona was a member of the Parks and Recreation Committee and was elected to the Norwalk Board of Education, serving as Chairman of the Board in the later years of her term. She was a member and President of the Woman’s Board of Norwalk Hospital, and was on the board of the Union Trust Bank.

Mona volunteered in many capacities throughout her life, including with the Norwalk Hospital, its thrift shop Treasure House, the Norwalk-Wilton chapter of the Red Cross, and with the Open Door Shelter.

She was a 50-year member of the Sasqua Garden Club, and a founding member of the Saugatuck Shores Club. Mona served as a Trustee of the Belvedere and Inisfada Foundations. Tennis and golf were her favorites, and she played tennis until she was 90 with friends whom she cherished.

Her childhood summers in Westhampton Beach and Quogue were remembered fondly. Those days ended with the Great Hurricane of 1938 when friends perished and Mona and her sister Joan were rescued by the Coast Guard the following day.

Graveside Services will be held at 11:30 AM on Thursday, Oct 21, at St. John Cemetery, Norwalk. 

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to: The Carver Foundation, 7 Academy Street, Norwalk, CT 06850, or carvernorwalk.org.