Obituary of Maureen A. Woods

On Friday, August 9, Maureen A. Woods, 77, passed away peacefully surrounded by her family at Memorial-Sloan Kettering hospital where she was always successfully and compassionately cared for as a faithful patient since 2005. Maureen grew up in Woodside, Queens in the Celtic Park apartments. She was a proud graduate of St. Teresa's elementary school and St. Vincent Ferrer high school in Manhattan. Maureen resided in Auburndale, Queens, where she raised her four children with her husband George. Employed since age 17 as a customer service manager by New York Telephone, which later grew to become Verizon, Maureen was a smart, dedicated worker. She happily retired in 2005. Maureen is truly and absolutely the most beautiful woman, wife, mother, and Nana. Sharp and funny, Maureen always tells it like it is. She is also literally the bravest, strongest, and toughest person any of us have known. She is a survivor. No matter what diagnosis ever came her way, she fought and used her strength, drive, and all available modern medical resources until the end. "Mo" and "Princess" is the beloved wife of George P. Woods for the last 51 years. She is the loving mother to Georgie, Danny, Lauren Owens and her husband Tom and the late Gary Scott Woods. Her children could not be more proud to call her their mother. She is mother-in-law to Mary Woods. She is the cherished "Nana" to James Michael, Daniel John Jr., Christopher Michael Woods, Aurora Catherine, Ruby Eve and Genevieve Grace Owens. She is the dear sister to Lawrence Appell and his wife Marion and Catherine Appell. She is also survived by nieces and nephews, many cousins, and close friends. Even though life tested her more than a few times, including experiencing the loss of her first baby Patrick and her son Gary, Maureen held strong Catholic faith throughout her life. She also prayed to and believed in the great hope and miracles of Saint Jude, the patron saint of hopeless cases and of things despaired. Maureen also believes in the skilled doctors and caregivers at Memorial-Sloan Kettering Cancer Center. If she were here today, she would tell you – don't ever smoke, pray to the Apostle of Hope St. Jude, and always make sure you are cared for at "Sloan" to ensure the best outcomes. In lieu of flowers, please consider making a donation to Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center to support its lifesaving work, or the work of her longtime pulmonologist who she trusted above all, Dr. Marc Feinstein, to find a cure for pulmonary diseases like COPD that she lived with. Maureen is now at peace, and happily reunited with her son Gary in heaven, her parents Kay and Larry, and other beloved relatives who passed before her. Her beauty, class, grace, realness, and laugh will be missed by all who knew her, but she will always be in our hearts. Visitation hours will be Monday, August 12 from 4-8PM at Edward D. Lynch Funeral Home, Inc, 43-07 Queens Boulevard, Sunnyside, NY. Funeral Mass will be held at 9:45 am on Tuesday, August 13, 2024 at St. Kevin RCC in Flushing, NY. Burial to follow at Calvary Cemetery, Woodside at 11:30 am.