Obituary of Michael Shamus Daley

Milton - Michael Shamus Daley was born on May 25, 1940 at the Bishop DeGoesbriand Hospital in Burlington, VT to John Joseph and Mary Louise (Laird) Daley. The ninth of ten brothers and sisters, Michael grew up surrounded by friends and family on S. Champlain Street where he attended Christ the King and Cathedral High School, graduating as a member of the second class of students from the new Rice Memorial High in 1960. After a brief flirtation with the Catholic seminary and the US Air Force, Michael spent time traveling to visit his many brothers, sisters, nieces, and nephews who had migrated to various parts of the United States. He settled back in Burlington and began working at the Medical Center Hospital of Vermont.

Michael’s family and faith were the two passions that he served throughout his life and after a brief marriage to Georgiana Adam in 1964 he met and married Alice (Dodds) Daley in 1971. They moved to Milton in 1977 where they would raise their three children Michael II, Sean, and Mary-Kathleen and become active members of the community and Trinity Episcopal Church. He was a common fixture at Milton sporting events, where he could be counted on for his (oftentimes overly) vocal support of the home team.

After retiring from the hospital after 36 years, Michael became a fixture at Costco, doing two of his most favorite things - talking with and feeding people. Many in the community who knew him as the gregarious orderly that shepherded people in and out of the operating room now saw him regularly doling out samples of whatever was on offer at the time. You could always count on him to tell a story or two about his youthful escapades in Burlington, a bawdy joke (or ten), or to brag about the latest endeavors of his children and grandchildren. His ability to speak to anyone and everyone gave the impression there wasn’t anyone he didn’t know (which was very close to true) and it was a running joke in the family to see how long it would take for Dad to strike up a meaningful conversation in any location: from Ottawa to Florida to Scotland to Ireland. He was fiercely proud of his Irish heritage and was able to visit Ireland twice with his family.

Michael Shamus Daley died peacefully on November 25 after a years-long battle with cancer. He leaves behind his beloved wife Alice of Burlington; son Michael Shamus Daley II of Newport and his children Michael Seamus III, Aydan Russell, Julia-Rose Alison, Elizabeth Evelyn and their mother Robyn Longtin of Johnson; son Sean Patrick and wife Stacey Lynn Daley of Essex Junction and their daughters Roan Rosemary and Agatha Alice; daughter Mary-Kathleen and partner Talia Smith of Richmond; his younger brother Dennis and wife Madge Daley of Forfar, Angus, Scotland; and generation-spanning numbers of nieces, nephews, in-laws, acquaintances, and good friends - all of them well-fed and laughing.

Funeral services will be held at St. Andrews Episcopal Church, 1063 Prim Rd, Colchester, VT 05446 on Saturday, December 2, 11AM with burial to follow. In lieu of flowers, Michael asked that donations be made to St. Andrews.