Known for her quick wit, astute mind and her passion for politics
Published January 9, 2019
LYNNFIELD — Jeannette “Jean” (Dennehy) Fantone, 89, of Lynnfield died on Friday, Nov. 30, 2018.
She was born to Jeannette and Dennis Dennehy on February 18, 1929. Her mother was a piano teacher and her father a co-owner of Dennehy Brothers Dairy in Milton.
Mrs. Fantone was raised in Quincy and graduated from Thayer Academy. She continued her education at Boston University, where she received her bachelor’s degree in Political Science in 1951.
Jeannette married Joseph C. Fantone, Jr. on September 2, 1950 and together they raised their family in Wethersfield and West Hartford, Connecticut prior to settling in Needham in 1970. She cherished her role as a wife and mother of five children who greatly benefited from her love and support throughout their lives. As her children grew, Mrs. Fantone joined her husband at Polaroid where she worked as an administrative assistant until she retired in 1988.
In her retirement, she remained active in her support of her children and grandchildren. She was known for her quick wit, astute mind, and a passion for current affairs and politics that fueled lively discussions and debates with her family and friends. She had a strong connection to the ocean, spending many summers as both a child and adult with her family in Rye, N.H.
Mrs. Fantone was preceded in death by her beloved husband, the late Joseph C. Fantone, Jr., daughter Jeannette Fantone Newton, sister Carolyn Pokorny, and brothers Paul, Robert, and Edward Dennehy.
She is survived by four of her five children: Joseph C. Fantone, III and his wife Rosalind of Ann Arbor, Michigan; Stephen D. Fantone and his wife Elizabeth “Betsy” of Lynnfield; Julia C. Jacobs and her husband Clifford Jacobs of Billerica, Raymond C. Fantone and his wife Ann Watson of Blythewood, South Carolina; and by her son-in-law, Brian Newton of New Albany, Ohio. She is also survived by 11 grandchildren and their spouses: Julia Anne Pritzel and her husband Dan Pritzel, Joseph C. “Jay” Fantone IV, Stephen J. Fantone, Dennis W. Fantone and his wife Danielle, Thomas Newton and his wife Rebekah, Jeannette Newton, Robert Newton, Clifford Jacobs, Jr., Michelle Fantone, Rebecca Fantone and Erin Jeannette Fantone. She is also survived by three great-grandchildren: Eliza Jane Pritzel, Heidi Anne Pritzel and Josephine “Josie” Jeannette Fantone.
Her funeral will be held from the McDonald Funeral Home, 19 Yale Ave., Wakefield on Saturday, Jan. 12 at 9 a.m., followed by a funeral Mass in Our Lady of the Assumption Church, corner of Grove and Salem Streets, Lynnfield at 10 a.m. Interment, Forest Hill Cemetery, Lynnfield. Visitation for relatives and friends will be held at the funeral home on Friday, Jan. 11 from 3-7 p.m.
In lieu of flowers, donations to the St. Francis Catholic School Annual Appeal are appreciated because they reflect Jeannette’s strong commitment to both her Catholic faith and education and also support her granddaughter Julia Fantone Pritzel’s work there as principal and educator. The address is St. Francis of Assisi Catholic School, Development Office, 2270 E. Stadium Boulevard, Ann Arbor, MI 48104.
