Leonard "Peter" Hickey Jr. Obituary (1937 - 2015)

Leonard "Peter" Hickey, Jr., son of Leonard Peter Hickey, Sr. and Mary Agnes (Doherty) Hickey, born on April 9, 1937, passed away peacefully in his home in Saddlebrooke, AZ on Saturday, May 23 after a long and valiant fight with cancer. He is survived by his partner of 25 years, Sybil Byrnes; daughters Mary Anne Hickey of Springfield, MA and Donna Hickey of Sausalito, CA; son L. Peter Hickey III of Washington DC; granddaughter Danielle Carolyn Hickey and her fiancee William Miller, both of Springfield MA. He is also survived by his sisters Ellen DiCarlo (Alan) of Charleston, SC and Anne Burns of Middletown, RI, former wife Carol Hickey, as well as numerous nieces and nephews. Peter is predeceased by his sister Maureen K. Hickey of Cincinnati, OH; brother-in-law Bill Burns of RI, and Jean Hickey of Albany, NY. Peter was a graduate of Holyoke (MA) High School (1954) and Vermont Academy (1956) and received his BA from the University of Massachusetts (Amherst). He worked at the Holyoke Transcript and Springfield Union newspapers as a reporter, editor and columnist before returning to college to pursue his masters and PhD at the State University of New York (Albany). He went on to a staff position in the New York State Senate where he advanced groundbreaking environmental legislation. That led to a three-year position in the Carter Administration as the Director of Interstate Science and Technology Policy. He then transitioned to the private sector in the San Francisco Bay area, working for twenty years in the electronics and telecommunications management field including serving as the CEO of Cycomm International. After retirement Peter and Sybil moved to Tucson where they resided for the past 12 years. In 2007 they discovered the "RV World", spending 6 to 11 months annually touring our country. Peter was a lifelong athlete enjoying baseball, basketball and skiing, remaining an avid runner throughout his life. His many passions included international travel, reading, politics, fine wines, good food and bad puns. He loved the wine country of France, the beaches of Cape Cod, the hills in Mill Valley, CA and the deserts of Arizona.