Deborah B.     Donnelly

Journalist, Roxbury Leader

Deborah B. Donnelly, 62, journalist and columnist of Roxbury, died unexpectedly February 7 at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center in New York following heart surgery. Ms Donnelly was a former editor at Town Times in Watertown when that publication was owned by The Bee Publishing Company.

She was the wife of Sean James Donnelly, vice president of The House of Burgundy, Inc, and active member of the Roxbury community. They were married for nearly 40 years.

Mrs Donnelly was born in Bridgeport on January 8, 1945, daughter of Judge and state Senator J. Kenneth Bradley and Ina Trivers Bradley, a writer and civic leader. She grew up on Long Island Sound in Westport and later settled in Ridgefield with her husband in the late 1960s, where she was a dedicated volunteer in the community. She served as president of the Ridgefield Women’s Committee and a member of the Ridgefield Garden Club.

Mrs Donnelly’s journalistic career spanned more than 30 years. The New York Times and The Hartford Courant published her opinion columns and she was a feature writer for Women’s World and Executive magazines. She wrote editorials on a regular basis for the Westport News and in 1981 she became the daily editorial writer for the Greenwich Time. She later assisted in the startup of a new publication called the Greenwich News and acted as editorialist and columnist.

More than 20 years ago, Mrs Donnelly and her family moved to Roxbury, where she worked as managing editor of the Litchfield Enquirer, building it from a 12-page paper to a 32-page newspaper over five years. She received several New England Press Association awards while at the Litchfield Enquirer and later during her years as managing editor of the Town Times in Watertown. She was the first woman initiated into the Litchfield Rotary Club and was a member of the First Artillery Regiment as its military correspondent. She also produced her own weekly interview show called Around Town With Deborah Donnelly for Cable 5.

In the 1990s she was an editor for Patent Trader, a Westchester County, N.Y., newspaper and then managing editor of The Heritage Villager in Southbury. Most recently, she reported for Country Life, a special supplement to the Waterbury Republican-American. Her column, “My Word,” which focused on life and the people in Litchfield County, was published for nearly ten years by the Sunday Republican.

Her affection for her community was visible as she served on the Roxbury Volunteer Recognition Committee and the Republican Town Committee, and was museum trustee for the Roxbury Historical Society.

R. Scudder Smith, who published the Town Times when it was owned by The Bee Publishing Company, this week remembered Mrs Donnelly both as a friend and as a consummate professional. “Deborah’s experience and skill as a journalist and her deep understanding of community life proved invaluable to the success of our efforts to turn around the fortunes of the Town Times, when we purchased it,” he said. “She really connected with the people there and everywhere she went. We will never forget her.”

Besides her husband, Mrs Donnelly is survived by her daughter, Amy K.D. Tobik of Winter Springs, Fla.; and two grandchildren whom she adored, Katie and Emily. She is also survived by her brother, James Peters Bradley of Fairfield; and her sister, Bonnie Bradley of Roxbury. She was preceded in death by her parents; and her sister, Mary Lou Colby of Florida.

A memorial service will be held at 10 am, March 10, at St Patrick’s Church in Roxbury. Burial will be private in St Patrick’s Cemetery, Roxbury.

The Southbury Funeral Home of Munson-Lovetere, 235 Main Street North, is in charge of arrangements.

The Newtown Bee        February 16, 2007