D. Edward Dooley of Lynn, a teacher for most of his adult life, died Thursday, November 5, 2026 at Melrose-Wakefield Hospital after a period of declining health. He was 79.
He was born October 19, 1947 to Daniel J. and Edwina (Honen) Dooley and grew up in Saugus. He graduated from St. Mary’s Boys High School in Lynn in 1965, earned his bachelor’s degree at Boston College and a master’s degree at Assumption College.
His family describes him as a teacher’s teacher, someone who could teach almost any subject and who treated the subject as only part of the job. The rest was the relationships: with students finding out what they could do, with colleagues sharing the work, and with the staff who kept a school running. His career took him to St. John’s High School in Shrewsbury, to Malden Catholic, and to schools in England, France and Italy.
Between teaching posts he spent years ministering to the community at Covenant House in New York City, the shelter for homeless young people. His family says that work stayed with him for the rest of his life, and that the people he met there often found their way into his lessons, connecting what was on the page to the lives of people he had known.
In the early 1990s he joined the faculty at St. John’s Preparatory School in Danvers, where he taught English, history and foreign language for more than 20 years. Versatile and willing to fill whatever gap a school year opened, he stayed at the Prep until his retirement. His family writes that his life was the classroom and that his influence continues in the people who learned beside him and from him.
Outside school he enjoyed time with family and friends and the occasional show or concert.
He leaves his brother Steven Dooley of Lynn and his sister Maureen Stewart of Lowell; his sister-in-law Lisa Dooley of Andover; his nieces Erin Tobin, Sara Corcoran, Fiona Dooley, Brigid Dooley and Mariah Dooley; his great-niece and great-nephews Gabriella, Jackson and Henry; and his cousin and close friend Betty Marino, along with many friends, colleagues and former students. His brother David Dooley died before him.
A funeral Mass will be celebrated Saturday, November 14, 2026 at 11 a.m. at St. Mary of the Annunciation Church, 24 Conant Street, Danvers. At his request there will be no visiting hours, and burial will be private. Donations in his memory may be made to Covenant House New York, 460 West 41st Street, New York, NY 10036, or at ny.covenanthouse.org. Arrangements are by C.R. Lyons and Sons Funeral Directors, 28 Elm Street, Danvers Square.
Compiled from information published by Lynn, MA. Photograph courtesy of the family via Lynn, MA. This is our own summary, not the family’s obituary; read the full obituary and leave a condolence at the funeral home’s page on Legacy.com. Corrections: we will fix any error promptly.
