PORTLAND — Helen Theresa Ranaghan, 95, died Oct. 19, at a Portland hospital following a brief illness.

She was born in Portland on Oct. 12, 1918, the youngest of a large family. Her parents were John S. and Sara C. Mullin Quinn. She was a proud graduate of Portland High School, class of 1936, and went on to graduate from Northeastern Business College. Ranaghan worked as an executive secretary for the John Hancock Life Insurance Company prior to the birth of her children.

On Nov. 5, 1949, she married her childhood sweetheart, Portland Police Officer Richard J. Ranaghan Sr. Early in their marriage, they lived on Cumberland Avenue, close to where they spent their youth. They then had a home built in Libbytown, where they created lifelong memories. She especially appreciated living near her sister, Rita, and they made several trips back and forth between their homes. The two sisters enjoyed one another’s company and afternoons would often find them out shopping together. She kept a meticulous household and found great satisfaction in working in her yard and tending her flower beds.

She was predeceased by her husband in October of last year; and her siblings, Sarah Catherine McGonagle, twins William Henry and Charles Mullin Quinn, John Martin Quinn, Mary Adeline Chalmers and Rita Elizabeth Allen.

She is survived by her son, Richard J. Ranaghan Jr., and his partner, Joy O’Brien, of Portland; a daughter, Margaret Hoyt, and son-in-law, Gary, of Scarborough; and grandchildren, James and Matthew Ranaghan, John, Elizabeth and Sarah Catherine Hoyt. Among her many nieces and nephews, she was most appreciative of the care and attention shown by Jane Kenny and Sarah McGonagle. She considered her niece, Mary DiDonato, to be like a second daughter, and she enjoyed their calls, visits and gifts of chocolate.

Visiting hours will be held Tuesday at the Conroy-Tully Crawford Funeral Home, Portland. Prayers recited at the funeral home at 9:15 a.m. on Wednesday, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 a.m. at the Cathedral of the Immaculate Conception, 307 Congress St., Portland. Burial will follow in Calvary Cemetery, South Portland.

In tribute to her husband, she requested that donations in lieu of flowers be offered to the Alzheimer’s Association, Maine Chapter, 383 U.S. Route 1, Suite 2 C, Scarborough, ME 04074.

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