Daniel J. O'Neill, 89, passed away peacefully on December 1, 2020 at Golden Pond Assisted Living facility in Hopkinton. Sadly, he became another statistic to the insidious coronavirus. He had been declining mentally over the last few years when he was diagnosed with Alzheimer's Dementia in 2017.
Mr. O'Neill was born in Groton, CT, on May 15, 1931. He excelled in sports, loved football and was the quarterback for Barnstable High School. Upon graduation, he followed in the footsteps of his father, who was an officer in the U.S. Coast Guard during World War II, and entered the National Guard, serving for one year before joining the U.S. Army during the Korean War, where he served his country bravely for two years.
Upon returning home to Cape Cod, he was briefly on the Barnstable Police Department when he met the love of his life, Dorothy Drew, when she was working as a waitress during her college summer break. They were married on August 20, 1955 and had been married for 57 years before she passed away in 2012.
After his military service, Mr. O'Neill entered college and graduated with honors, earning a Bachelor of Science and Masters degrees and a Ph.D. in Psychology. He taught at several colleges during his 30 year career, including Boston University, the University of Rhode Island and UMass-Dartmouth. He even authored two books, one on women's health and the other a science fiction novel "Return to Nowhere".
His hobbies were jogging in the park near his home in New Bedford, and practicing karate and judo. He got as far as earning his brown belt in karate before suffering a knee injury. In his later years, he enjoyed his homes in St. Petersburg, Florida and on Cape Cod, having morning coffee with his friends, biking around the island and taking his dogs for walks.
After his wife passed away, he and his daughter and cousin Marcia took a long, overdue and much needed trip to Europe. He had never traveled much in his lifetime and had never been to Europe. One of his favorite places Mr. O'Neill visited was Ireland, especially County Cork where his great-grandparents were from. On his last day in Dublin he celebrated his 82nd birthday and knew his late wife was with him in spirit. It was also during this trip that he got to visit Normandy Beach in France, finding the grave of his uncle James who died there during World War II. It was a very memorable experience and something that he had always wanted to do.
He is survived by his two children, Catherine Schinas of New Bedford, and Daniel J. O'Neill, Jr. and his wife Laura of Marstons Mills; his favorite cousin, Marcia Goulding of New Bedford; and his former colleague and close friend, Leo Arnfeld of Brookline.
His Funeral Mass was celebrated on Wednesday December 9, 2020 at St. Francis of Assisi Church, New Bedford. Burial with military honors followed in St. Francis Xavier Cemetery, Centerville. Arrangements were by the Saunders-Dwyer Home for Funerals, 495 Park St., New Bedford. For online condolence book, please visit www.saundersdwyer.com.