Verna Tomalty Cheney

Verna Tomalty Cheney, RN, 80, of Mansfield Center, Connecticut, beloved wife, mother and grandmother, passed away peacefully on March 24, 2015, surrounded by her family at Windham Hospital, Willimantic, CT. Born on April 19, 1934, in Waltham, MA, to George B. and Lucie S. Tomalty, Verna graduated from Waltham High School. The first one in her family to attend college, Verna put herself through a five year nursing program, graduating in 1957 with a BSN from Bates College. She started her nursing career as a visiting nurse with the Hartford VNA. Here she met her beloved husband, Richard whom she married on September 7, 1958. After briefly living in West Hartford, they moved to Mansfield, to raise a family. Verna spent the next 35 years of her nursing career at Windham Hospital, most notably working nights as Head Nurse of the Emergency Department. She retired from there in 1991 as the Nurse Manager. She is survived by her loving husband of 57 years, Richard A. Cheney; her daughter Beth E. Cheney of Columbia; her son, Richard A. Cheney, Jr. and his wife, Pamela of Mansfield Center; her son David B. Cheney and his wife Kim of Coventry; her daughter Pamela C. Ockert and her husband Paul of South Windsor; and her daughter Joy C. Chronowski and her husband Lou of Munster, Indiana. She is also survived by her nine cherished grandchildren, Alec and Julia Mendes, Alexa and Brian Cheney, Jonathan, Amelia and Benjamin Ockert, and Abigail and Alyssa Chronowski. She is survived by her beloved sister Stella T. Dahl of Cromwell, her brother-in-law Jack D. Cheney, Jr. and his wife Sharma of Lander, Wyoming, and numerous nieces, nephews and dear friends, most notably Charlie "Harris" and Charleen Knapp of Mansfield. She was predeceased by her parents, brother-in-law O. Christian Dahl, and precious grandchildren, Evan and Megan Chronowski. Besides spending time with her family, she loved quilting, gardening and watching UCONN Women's basketball. Her impact on the community was evident when she completed her life's journey at Windham Hospital, cared for and visited by medical staff and friends who shared memories of having worked , trained , and been cared for by Verna. The family would like to thank the staff of Windham Hospital, especially Dr. Mary Barry who cared for Verna with the compassion and love she would have given to her own mother. A celebration of Verna's life will be held at the Columbia Congregational Church on Saturday, March 28, at 3 pm. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to Windham Hospital Foundation to establish a memorial in Verna's name. For an online memorial guestbook please visit www.potterfuneralhome.com .