Megan Sheehy

Megan Marjorie Sheehy, 14, of Marblehead passed away peacefully at home on August 9th after her yearlong challenge of osteosarcoma. The beloved only child of Jean and Tim Sheehy, she was born August 7, 2000 in Beverly. She will always be loved by her grandparents, aunts, uncles and cousins, who brought her great joy.

She attended Marblehead Community Charter School. With tremendous support from the staff, she achieved her goal of successfully completing 7th grade despite the time lost to the aggressive course of chemotherapy and multiple surgeries. She was a voracious reader, delighting and surprising her teachers with the length and breadth of her annual summer reading list.

She had a passion for the drama program, and became her roles in the school plays; including the roles of Ida in “Honk” and The Jester in “Once Upon a Mattress”. Megan was active in Charter’s music program, where she sang and played oboe. She helped organize and performed at this year’s “Rock For Meg” fundraiser. With unprecedented community support, a tremendous amount was raised for Angels Above, a charity making pediatric patient’s stays at Mass General more pleasant.

Megan began her love of performing music at her spiritual home, Old North Church, in the excellent Cecelia Choir and then the Parish Singers. She was thrilled to be part of the Youth Festival Chorus at Christmas. With several of her peers from Old North, she successfully auditioned for and performed with the National Children’s Honor Choir in Chicago in 2011.

Megan’s passion for equestrian eventing began when she was 5. She learned about the responsibility of caring for her pony, and achieved high levels of success in stadium jumping, dressage, and cross-country. In addition to numerous blue ribbons, she was awarded the prestigious Boxford Trails Association’s Horsemanship/Sportsmanship perpetual trophy in 2011. Even after losing her leg, Megan continued to ride her beloved Missy B. Megan’s love for travel, sailing and swimming took her on adventures to many ports from Maine to Belize.

Megan inspired the community through her grace and strength in the face of incredible adversity, and impressed her caretakers as mature and extraordinarily articulate. She was loving, grateful, and always hopeful. The incredible profusion of blue ribbons throughout town and around the world is a testament to her spirit, and to the generous and compassionate spirit of her community. Before her illness, Megan developed a passion for volleyball. In lieu of flowers, please consider honoring Megan with a donation to the LoveStrong Volleyball Scholarship at National Grand Bank in Marblehead.

A celebration of Megan’s life and spirit will be held on Saturday, August 23rd at 2pm at Old North Church, 35 Washington Street in Marblehead. Eustis and Cornell are making the arrangements.