Obituary of Dorothy E. "Dot" (Danforth) O'Brien

Dorothy E. “Dot” O’Brien, 79, of Peabody, died early Saturday morning surrounded by her loving family at the Lahey Clinic in Burlington following a long illness. She was the devoted wife of James F. O’Brien with whom she shared over 60 years of marriage. Born in Peabody, she was the daughter of the late Ashton and Evelyn (Aycock) Danforth. She was a lifelong resident of Peabody and graduate of Peabody High School, class of 1956. She later received her associate’s degree from Burdett College in Lynn. Dot was employed for over 25 years as an executive secretary for Arthur D. Little in Cambridge before she retired. After her retirement, she enjoyed traveling with her husband in their motor home across the country from here to Arizona, New Mexico, and Florida before heading back home in the spring. Dot was also an administrator with Camp Fire Girls for many years and also was a volunteer for the cancer drive. She also enjoyed doing genealogy for her family, but her favorite endeavor was spending time with her husband and family and sharing in all of their activities. She will be dearly missed. Besides her loving husband, she is survived by her daughter, Barbara O’Brien of Rhode Island, her two sons, Greg and his wife Shelley O’Brien of Melrose and Mark and his partner Ellen Youngclaus of Peabody, her brother, Bill Danforth of Beverly and by her beloved 7 grandchildren, Jonathan, Brandy, Ashley, Samantha, Cameron, Cole, and Finn and by her 2 great grandchildren, Ava and Spencer. She was predeceased by her sister Joan Hahn. Visiting hours will be held on Wednesday from 4:00 until 8:00 PM at the Conway, Cahill-Brodeur Funeral Home, 82 Lynn St, Peabody to which relatives and friends are kindly invited to attend. Burial services will be private. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in her name to the Leukemia and Lymphoma Society, 9 Erie Drive, Suite 101, Natick, MA 01760.