- Date Of Birth: June 25, 1914
- Date Of Death: July 1, 2007
- State: Connecticut
NEW HARTFORD –KAVANAUGH – Laura Auburn Kavanaugh, 93, died Sunday July 1st at Cherry Brook Health Center in Canton. She was born on June 25, 1914 to Olin and Alice (Geiger) Murphy in New Hartford. She attended local New Hartford schools and graduated as Salutatorian from The Gilbert School in Winsted, Class of 1931. Laura went on to get a degree in Psychology from the University of Rochester where she was elected to Phi Beta Kappa. After college she was a Social Worker for Westchester County, New York, Long Lane School in Middletown, and for the State of Connecticut in Litchfield County. She married Travers C. Auburn on October 31, 1942, and shortly thereafter moved back to New Hartford to the house on West Hill Road where she would live for 61 years. Following a short hiatus from the working world after the birth of her son Travers, she was elected to two terms in the Connecticut Legislature as a Representative from New Hartford. She later worked for many years for the Red Cross mostly in the area of Service to Military Families. Laura was active all her life in various New Hartford activities, serving on the Boards of the New Hartford Library, New Hartford Historical Society, and Pine Grove Cemetery Association. In 1962 she received the Fannie Bigelow award from the University of Rochester for service to her community. She was also an important contributor to the family Christmas tree business, which in 2006 marked its 50th year selling trees. Her husband Travers died in 1988 and a few years later she happily married James Kavanaugh, a lifelong acquaintance. After Jim died in 2005, Laura moved to Hamilton Heights and in 2007 to Cherry Brook where she shared a room with her sister Lois Brucker. Besides her son and sister, she is survived by her daughter-in-law, Ann Auburn, of New Hartford; three step-daughters, Coleen English of New Hartford, Kathleen Hull of Haddam, and Deborah Deasy of Mystic. She was fortunate to have eight step-grandchildren, all surviving. Also surviving is her sister-in-law Mickey Murphy of New Hartford. Laura was predeceased by her four brothers, Olin, Osborne, Paul and Clayton. Her son and daughter-in-law wish to acknowledge and thank the staffs of Hamilton Heights and Cherry Brook for their excellent care and concern for Laura and her family during the last days of her life. Family and friends are welcome at her home on West Hill Road (enter at #34) from 3 to 6 PM on Saturday July 21 for a remembrance and celebration of her life. Donations in her name may be made to the Friends of New Hartford Fund, c/o Community Foundation of NW CT, PO Box 1144, Torrington, CT 06790. (Please note Laura Kavanaugh on the memo line.) Montano-Shea Funeral Home, 5 Steele Road, New Hartford has charge of the private arrangements. Visit an online guestbook at www.montano-shea.com.
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