Clemmonce Isabelle McDonald

Clemmonce “Terrye” McDonald passed away at age 94 surrounded by her children on Friday, January 28, 2022, at White Plains Hospital after a courageous battle with kidney disease and congestive heart failure.

Born in Manhattan in 1927, Terrye was premature, weighing only 2-1/2 lbs. She was a true miracle baby. She graduated from George Washington High School and subsequently went to work for Revlon. Her family loved listening to stories from her youth about frequent trips to Coney Island, getting dressed up to go out dancing, and hanging out in Harlem with the likes of Lena Horne, Duke Ellington, and the dancing Nicholas Brothers.

At the age of eight, Terrye lost her beloved mother, Eileen, days after she gave birth to her brother Reginald. Generous and loving family and friends helped her father to raise she and her siblings. Terrye later lost her teenaged brother Edwin Jr. to heart disease, her only sister Gloria in 1968, her father in 1973, and her brother Reginald in 2007.

Raising three children on her own in the Highbridge section of the Bronx, she was loved and respected in the neighborhood. Along with her son and eventual caregiver, Kirk, Terrye left the Bronx for Albany, NY in 1991, and subsequently resided in Westchester County, NY.

Unshakably loyal to and supportive of her family and friends, Terrye loved reading mystery novels, surfing the web on her laptop, checking in with her Facebook friends, nature shows, TV competition series (The Amazing Race, Project Runway, Top Chef, and The Challenge were among her favorites), and exciting movies.

Terrye was preceded in death by her husband, John McDonald; parents Edwin Forde and Eileen Phillips-Forde; sister Gloria; and brothers Edwin Jr., and Reginald. She is survived by her daughter, Sheila Smith-McDonald; son, Kirk McDonald; son, Darryl Wright; daughter-in-law, Maxine Wright; grandson, Vere Smith; great-granddaughter, Kamila Dior Smith, and friends from old and new neighborhoods who will miss her dearly.

The viewing will be held on Saturday, February 5, 2022, at 10:00 AM at Ballard-Durand, 2 Maple Avenue, White Plains, NY 10601. Her service will begin at 12 noon. Memorials in her memory may be sent to The American Kidney Fund (kidneyfund.org).

The family is forever grateful to the doctors, nurses, and technicians affiliated with White Plains Hospital for the care and support given to her and to us, and we are equally grateful to our extended family and friends.