Anne O'Neill Mclaughlin

On Thursday, January 25, 2018, Anne O’Neill McLaughlin of Catonsville, MD, passed away with her family at her side.

Anne was born on December 9, 1958 in Baltimore, MD, the daughter of James and Anna O’Neill.   She grew up in Catonsville on Garden Ridge Rd along with her sisters, Kathy Kruger, Adriane Quinn, Peggy Dell (twin), and Leslie Vanhooser.

On July 7, 1990, Anne married her husband Jack.  Together they had a son, Ian (25), who she loved all the way to the moon and back.  She also was a step-mom to Jay (deceased 1999), and Dave (33), but she loved and supported them as if they were her own.

Anne enjoyed camping with her family, traveling to the Finger Lakes in New York, up and down New England, the Bourbon and Barbeque tour (Jack’s favorite) through North Carolina, Tennessee, Kentucky, and the Florida Keys.  A year didn’t go by with at least one trip to her favorite spot, North Beach campground in St. Augustine, Florida.

Anne always had a compassionate heart, which is why in 1988 she entered the field of education.  Anne, was proud of the work she did as a teacher.  She had a very diverse teaching career which included: teaching a mixed group of young children at the Catonsville Community College Child Care center; non-profit experiences both with Parents and Children Together and Johns Hopkins – Early Head Start focused on working with children and families with special needs, developmental delays, to families infected with HIV/AIDs, and families residing in homeless shelters; she held four different positions with Baltimore County Public Schools, supervising an on-site Child Care center at Milford Mill Academy, teaching in the Child Development and Human Services completer program at Catonsville High School, teaching 2nd grade at Westchester Elementary and finally, her true passion, teaching Special Education students in Functional Academic skills, daily living skills, community and employment experiences.  Her final stop in education was as the Coordinator for Teacher Education at CCBC Essex, where she helped mold the next generation of educators.  In this position, she taught a combination of Early Childhood Development and Special Education classes.  It was a common practice for students to come up to her and thank her for helping them, telling her that they, “couldn’t have done it without her.”  She would often tell them and anyone that would listen that, “It is teachers that make all other professions possible.”

Her compassion extended beyond education.  In 2017, Anne participated in a fundraising initiative called the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society (LLS) Women of the Year.  Anne got involved in support of a friend’s son who had recently been diagnosed with Leukemia.  During her 10 week fundraising campaign, Anne raised over $56,000 and would be the first to tell you, she couldn’t have done it without the support of her family and friends.

Her colleagues have set up a Teacher Education Scholarship in Anne’s name with the CCBC Foundation. The Online Donation Form can be found by clicking the link below. A designation link for the scholarship fund has been set up in the drop down menu, but if you can’t find it,  insert “Anne McLaughlin Teacher Ed Scholarship Fund” under comments.  If by check: CCBC Foundation Office – Anne McLaughlin Teacher Ed Scholarship Fund, 7200 Sollers Point Road, Baltimore, MD 21222

People have been asking the family if there’s anything they can do.  We’ve given it some thought and here it is:

1. Make a difference is someone’s life. That’s what Anne did as a wife, mom, sister, friend, and teacher.

2. When you go home tonight, hug your wife, your husband, your partner, your child, your mom, your dad… because you never know when that person will be gone and you’ll never have that opportunity again.