Obituary of Consuelo Munoz Hirshon

With profound sadness and warmest reverence, the children of Consuelo Munoz Hirshon, 95, share word of her passing on Sunday, March 3, 2024. The youngest of three daughters and born on November 19th, 1928 to James R and Alma (Coons) Munoz, “Connie”, or “Shugie”, as she was affectionately known, was raised in Montclair, New Jersey. A graduate of The Kimberly (Montclair) Academy, she trained in fine arts at Skidmore College before withdrawing to see after her mother’s convalescence and, subsequently, travels to South America and Europe. As a young adult, she modeled in New York City while both assisting in the offices of the family’s shipping business and reading scripts for NBC.

Connie met her husband, US Navy Lieutenant Commander Sidney Hirshon (predeceased 2003), on a blind date in Washington DC, and soon married in 1955.

A life-long learner and advocate for her community and the underserved, Connie trained and worked as an operating room technician at the Washington Hospital Center, kindly received oncology patients as chief administrative assistant to Dr. John Potter at Georgetown University Medical School’s Lombardi Cancer Center, and volunteered as a docent at the Kreeger Museum. A sustaining member of The Junior League, Connie assisted with program outreach at both The Palisades and Foxhall Citizens Associations. She largely enjoyed social science and humanities lectures as a member of American University’s Osher Life Long Learning Institute (OLLI) while celebrating, well into her 90’s, the fellowship of peer French language learners studying in a novel neighborhood class offering.

A frequent volunteer in Washington area soup kitchens and homeless facilities, Connie was an impassioned member of The Animal Rescue League, who, often with the help of family members, rescued and re-homed abused and abandoned k-9s and felines. Her collaboration with animal welfare advocates has long informed her children’s efforts on behalf of wildlife protection and habitat restoration and reclamation.

In 2020, Connie spoke at Washington’s District Building in support of neighborhood programming assisting aging community members. Hers was a profoundly life-affirming narrative.

Connie is survived by her children, Harold and life-long companion, Lois Goodell of Gloucester, MA, dearly loved daughter Helen of Falls Church, VA, Russell and wife Jennifer (Wilner), and grandsons Tyler and Dylan of Potomac, MD.

There will be a service and reception at St. Patrick’s Episcopal Church, 4700 Whitehaven Parkway, NW Washington DC, on April 20, 2024 at 1pm. A private burial will take place at Arlington National Cemetery at a later date.

In lieu of flowers, Connie would have expressed gratitude for any contribution to the Palisades Village (palisadesvillage.org) or Foxhall Citizens Association (foxhall.org).