Sullivan, Maura Cecilia passed away peacefully on August 12th at age 82, surrounded by family after a long course of Alzheimer's disease. She was preceded in death by her parents, Robert and Evelyn (Craigue) Sullivan, and siblings David Sullivan and JoAnne (Sullivan) Cougan. Born March 11, 1937 in Jackson, Michigan, Maura spent her childhood in Boston and Lima, Ohio. She attended College of Saint Mary of the Springs in Ohio, and later received a master's degree in social work from the University of Minnesota. After college, Maura exercised her sophisticated, and often irreverent, sense of humor writing greeting cards for American Greetings in Cleveland. She married J. Raymond Zunt, and had three children: Joseph, Jennifer and Meghan; all inherited some of Maura's irreverence and interest in social justice. From 1977 to 2002, Maura was a faculty member in the School of Social Work at the University of Minnesota, where she served as Director of Field Instruction and greatly enjoyed teaching a course on Peace and Social Justice. In recognition of her work, she received the College of Human Ecology's Outstanding Professionals and Administrators Award and the College's Multicultural Award. One of her most influential academic articles focused on the international peacemaking work of Jane Addams and Emily Greene Balch during World War I, emphasizing what we can all learn from their example. Maura was a tireless advocate for social justice and women's empowerment, an active member of Women Against Military Madness (WAMM), and later, Grandmothers for Peace. Maura was a great connector of people, whether through her love of music, books, travel, cooking, or hanging out in her garden with one of her many pampered cats. She enjoyed writing prose, poetry and limericks. She will be deeply missed for her plentiful and infectious laughter, wicked sense of humor, pride in her Irish heritage, steadfast friendship, wise counsel, and devotion to her children and grandchildren. Maura is survived by her sister Brenda Sullivan, her three children: Joe (Kay), Jennifer (David), and Meghan, six grandchildren: Andrew and Ian Zunt, Erin and Finn Craig, and Emmett and Robert Sheehy, her ex-spouse Ray, as well as many nieces and nephews. In lieu of flowers, contributions can be made in her memory to: WAMM (womenagainstmilitarymadness.org). A memorial service will be held on Saturday, September 28th at St. Joan of Arc Catholic Church, 4537 3rd Ave. S., Minneapolis, with visitation at 11AM, Mass at noon, and reception to follow.

Published on August 18, 2019