Ann (Cooley) Buckley

SHARON—Ann (Cooley) Buckley died at her home in Sharon on Dec. 30, 2011, surrounded by her family. She was born in 1927, the daughter of Helen (Pierce) and Victor E. Cooley, grew up in Rye, N.Y., attended the Convent of the Sacred Heart in Noroton, Conn., and graduated from Manhattanville College in New York City in 1949.After two years with the CIA in Washington, D.C., she married James L. Buckley and moved to Sharon, where she raised her six children and participated in parish work and sports. She spent most of the years from 1971 until 2000 in Washington, where her husband served in various positions with the federal government. While there, she was active in the District of Columbia Hospice and Education for Parish Service programs.In 2006, she was in a car accident that left her a quadriplegic. She determined that she had been given a mission: to demonstrate that one can accept the consequences of such an accident and make the most of life, without complaint. That she did, and she affected many lives by her example.She is survived by her husband of 58 years; her daughter, Priscilla Buckley of Valbonne, France; her sons, Peter of New Canaan, Conn., Jay of Bristol, R.I., Bill of Bozeman, Mont., David of Arlington, Va., and Andrew of Somerville, Mass.; her sisters, Kay Cooley of Medford, N.J., and Helen Reilly of Flatrock, N.C.; her brother, Richard of Seattle, Wash.; and eight grandchildren.Her funeral Mass was held at St. Bernard’s Church in Sharon on Jan. 4. Contributions in her memory may be made to either St. Bernard’s Church or the Christopher Reeve Foundation, 636 Morris Turnpike, Suite 3A, Short Hills, NJ 07078. Arrangements are under the care of the Kenny Funeral Home in Sharon.