Madeleine Schwab
? - October, 17, 2020
Madeleine (Guilfoyle) Schwab (92) died October 17, 2020 surrounded by her family.
Madeleine, daughter of Leo Guilfoyle and Irene (Macklin) Guilfoyle was born and raised in Brooklyn NY. She attended Packer Collegiate Institute and graduated with a degree in Mathematics from Manhatanville College. She married Peter Van Pelt Schwab and they had 5 children (Kate, Eileen, Pete, Bill, and Jim). When circumstances required her to support her children she obtained a nursing degree (BS) from downstate Medical Center and became a NYC public health nurse. And then went on to graduate from a Cornell University and NYC joint pediatric nurse associate program (one of the earliest Nurse Practitioner programs in the country) and then a masters in Health Services from The New School. All this while working full time and raising her children. Madeleine took a one year sabbatical in order to manage a health center in Nazareth Kentucky. She retired from the New York City Department of Health after 30 years.
Madeleine had a lot of strength, gumption and spirit until the end. She gave sound guidance to her children and coworkers. She was a character in many ways*, she loved finding the perfect gift that you didn’t even know you needed (but you did), she never spoke harshly of people, she was thoughtful and honest. She loved her family, good food, reading, cards, puzzles, mysteries and knitting. She certainly will be missed; it is hard to believe she is actually gone from us.
She is survived by 4 of her children, 10 grandchildren and 14 great grandchildren.
* when she was in her 80’s she was driving a pickup truck (with a gun under the seat) to deliver medications to senior citizens who lived in bad neighborhoods.
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