Leo Cooney
Life after La Salle
My path after LaSalle was fairly straightforward. Holy Cross, which most Cooneys attend, and then Yale Medical School. My training was at Boston City Hospital, where I met Kathleen, learned how to be a doctor, and became interested in the care of older individuals. After training in Boston, two years in the US Army, and a year in England studying arthritis, I returned to Yale in 1976, hoping to develop my interest in the elderly into a Program in Geriatrics.
We love our Westville neighborhood in New Haven, a community of life-long friends. I enjoyed my efforts to teach students and resident physicians how to care for the special problems of older patients, and to help families care for impaired loved ones. Kathleen transitioned from nursing to special education, which she taught in inner city New Haven for 25 years, before devoting herself to the care of her parents. Her father, a remarkable deputy superintendent of police in Boston, lived with us for his last nine years, passing away peacefully in his own bed at 98.
We are very fortunate in that both of our boys settled in Connecticut, and we see a good deal of our four grandchildren, although Covid did challenge this closeness. Although I loved my work, I felt that 44 years was enough. I did not want to outlive my effectiveness, and retired in July of 2020.
Many of my multiple siblings still live in Rhode Island, and we get to Matunuck to see them frequently. Two of my nephews played lacrosse, football, and baseball at LaSalle, so we did get back to the campus frequently during their time there.
We have certainly been blessed in life; I believe that my LaSalle years gave me a strong foundation for the days that followed.
Leo Cooney <Leo.Cooney@ynhh.org>
New Haven, CT USA - Tuesday, June 22, 2021 at 11:56:11 (EDT)