- Date Of Birth: September 24, 1932
- Date Of Death: September 21, 2019
- State: Florida
Sonya Livingstone McShane passed away peacefully in her home on Saturday, September 21, 2019 surrounded by her loving family. Aptly nicknamed “Sunny”, there was nary a day that wasn’t made brighter by her presence in it.
Sunny was a native, lifelong Miamian born to Walter and Gertrude Livingstone on September 24, 1932. Sunny was the youngest (and saintliest) of four children who were raised in a small pine house just blocks from the Miami River. She held the affection- and affliction- of her three older brothers Wally, Tony, and Don, whose constant teasing and devilish antics set her on the early path to canonization.
To say her brothers were protective of her would be an understatement. A brown eyed, cherub-faced beauty with a heart of gold, the Livingstone brothers vetted her dates, rejected her suitors, and physically removed hopeful prospects from their home as Sunny helplessly stood by. This process was all carefully designed to make room for their top pick, a fellow Gesu classmate and Notre Dame graduate, Dr. William McShane. A 65-year love story ensued, and her brothers were finally redeemed.
Sunny was an athlete. She was a Gesu High School basketball star, a circus performer (yes folks, she spun from the foothold of the Spanish web for FSU’s Flying High Circus in the early 1950s), and avid bowler. She found the sport of tennis in her early 40s and a lifelong obsession was born. She considered tennis in any form or in any capacity as time well spent. For decades, Sunny played tennis daily (twice on Thursdays) and closely followed the careers of her favorite players. Sunny was a volunteer for the annual Miami tennis tournament for more than three decades.
As much as Sunny loved her children, she considered her grandchildren her greatest gift. Megan, Michael, Tommy, Sunny, Shane, and Maria were her pride and joy… and she was their “Bebe”. They will miss her, and her signature noodles, very much.
It would be remiss to not mention Sunny’s deep affection for her brothers’ children, the eleven nieces and nephews that she adored as her own. She was very honored to be their Aunt Sunny.
