Louise Hayes McCabe

Mary “Louise” Hayes McCabe died peacefully on August 31, 2025, surrounded by her five children at her beloved family home of 65 years.

Louise was born on August 15, 1934, at Mercy Hospital in Denver to Thomas Austin Hayes Jr. and Kathryn Genevieve Tierney Hayes. Louise was a proud fourth generation Coloradan and wore her settlers’ descendant distinction proudly. In 1938, Louise joyfully became a big sister to her cherished only sibling, Elizabeth.

Louise attended Blessed Sacrament grade school and loved life in her East Denver neighborhood. Her childhood was marked by great loss but also great resilience. After her father’s untimely death in 1938 and her mother’s passing in 1945, Louise and Elizabeth moved in with their aunt and uncle, Monica and Paul Fitzgerald, who lovingly raised the girls as their own.

She went on to attend Cathedral High School and Loretto Heights College where she made lifelong friends with whom she stayed in touch long after their 50th reunion. At 16, Louise met the love of her life, James Joseph McCabe of North Denver. She fondly remembered him taking her to see The Boy with Green Hair at the Orpheum Theater for their first date. While Jim served in the Marine Corps during the Korean War, they exchanged love letters, and she continued her studies at Loretto Heights. They were married on July 21, 1956.

Louise and Jim built a life together in Denver’s Mayfair neighborhood, raising five children in their warm and lively home. They were devoted members of Christ the King Parish and proudly sent all five children through Christ the King School and Bishop Machebeuf High School. Each of their children went on to attend Colorado colleges and universities.

As her children grew older, Louise began to volunteer at Christ the King School serving children with learning disabilities. This led her to Denver Academy where Louise began her teaching career in 1977 as a teacher’s aide. By the time she retired in 2000, she had become Head of the Lower School. Louise’s impact on the school community was immeasurable—she touched the lives of countless children, families, colleagues, and staff, who fondly joked that no matter how early they arrived, she was already inside the building with a smile and a plan for the day. In recognition of her extraordinary dedication, Denver Academy honored her in 2023 by naming its newly constructed building the Louise McCabe Performing Arts Center.

Louise embraced her role as grandmother beginning in 1984, when a new generation was blessed by her boundless love, generosity, and patience. She and Jim went on to enjoy twelve grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. Together they created countless memories—sleepovers, ski trips to Breckenridge, road trips across the American West, and sidelines filled with cheers at sporting events all over the Front Range. Louise never missed a birthday, hosted magical Christmas gatherings, planned lively Easter egg hunts, and travelled to college graduations across the country.

Louise is survived by her five children: Morna Steninger (John), Kathryn Sullivan (Gene), Martin McCabe (Greta Brandstetter), Kevin McCabe (Moira), and Peter McCabe; her twelve grandchildren: Thomas Sullivan (Katherine), Matthew Steninger, Elizabeth Beyer (Dan), Clare Steninger, David Steninger, Colleen Eberlein (Arthur), Madeleine McCabe, Grace McCabe, Mary Van Jacobs (Brendan), Ciara McCabe, Kyle McCabe, and Leo McCabe; and five great-grandchildren: Liam Webster, James Beyer, Finn Beyer, Ada Louise Beyer, and Abe Van Jacobs. She was preceded in death by her husband of 66 years, Jim, and her sister Elizabeth Walsh.

There was truly no one like Louise. Her warmth, elegance, kindness, devotion to family, and lifelong dedication to education made her an angel among us. She taught us that every time of day is a good time to enjoy champagne, that you don’t have to get your face wet to have fun in the pool, that the coldest Bronco games are better with homemade cookies, that a good book is a faithful friend, that a sister is worth more than gold, that babies don’t keep, and that every child is special.

Our heartbreak is softened only by gratitude for the years we shared with her, for the lessons she instilled, and for the love she gave so freely.

We will celebrate Louise’s life and honor her legacy with a Mass of the Resurrection on Friday, September 12 at 10:00am at Christ the King Catholic Church, 830 Elm Street in Denver. A rosary will precede the Mass at 9:30am. A reception will immediately follow.

In lieu of flowers, Louise’s family asks that you consider making a donation in her honor to Denver Academy’s Tuition Assistance Fund: www.DenverAcademy.org/give.