Maureen C. Pace, beloved Wife, Mother, Grandmother, and longtime resident of Yorktown Heights, NY passed away peacefully in her home surrounded by her family on March 18, 2023. She was 71. Maureen was a Registered Nurse all her life and made taking care of others her life’s work.

Maureen was born in 1951, in the Bronx, NY, to John and Shirley Briody. Maureen was an alumnus of Preston High School in 1969 and a proud graduate from The Mount Vernon Hospital School of Nursing in 1972.

On December 9, 1972, Maureen married her high school sweetheart and the love of her life, Frank Pace at Holy Family Catholic Church in the Bronx, NY. Frank and Maureen joyfully celebrated their 50th wedding anniversary recently and shared a love that most can only dream of. After starting their family, Maureen, ever the overachiever with Frank by her side, balanced raising four children while working a full-time nursing position, returned to school to earn a Bachelors’ and Masters’ Degree in Hospital Administration from Iona College.

For nearly 30 years, while working at Mt Vernon Hospital, Maureen’s professional positions grew from Head Nurse of the Emergency Room, to Director of Nursing, and ultimately Chief Operating Officer. She continued her dedication to Nursing at Putnam Hospital in Carmel, NY as the Director of Clinical Services where she spearheaded an Integrative Health Suite offering alternative therapies to Breast Cancer Patients, as well as creating the first Palliative Care Center in Putnam County. Maureen was passionate about improving quality of patient care, hospital standards and bringing innovative technology to nursing professionals.

Maureen is cherished by all who knew her and will be remembered for the immense love she had for her family and close friends and the warm gestures of love and thoughtful gifts that she would shower upon them. Those close to her knew that Maureen would always be there when they needed her and there was no place she would rather be. Helping others and making them happy brought tremendous joy and purpose to her life.

Maureen loved to travel, always planning the next exciting adventure for her and her beloved Frank before they arrived home from the trip they were on. A carefully crafted strategy so there was always a vacation to look forward to. Above all destinations, Siesta Key, was her favorite “home away from home”, where countless family memories were created over the last 50 years.

In her free time, Maureen could be found crafting, enjoying smooth jazz concerts with her sweetheart Frank, indulging in high tea with her girls, arranging an endless number of activities with her grandchildren and feeding the hummingbirds as she admired the magnificent garden and outdoor oasis that she and Frank cultivated over the years.

Maureen’s memory lives on through her loving and devoted husband Frank, her adoring children Jena Pace, Lauren (Michael) Specht, Christian (Valerie) Pace and Matthew (Pina) Pace. And through her grandchildren Caroline Pace, Emma Specht, Owen Specht, Alyssa Pace, Natalie Pace and Cassie Specht, as well as countless family and friends who she considered family.

In lieu of flowers or food, our family has established The Maureen Pace Memorial Scholarship Fund, which will be awarded annually to a deserving local candidate that wishes to pursue a degree in Nursing. Please help us support Maureen’s passion for Nursing by donating to this legacy fund at https://bold.org/funds/maureen-c-pace-memorial-scholarship-fund/

There is also a link below.