Pauline F. Hyatt

Pauline “Polly” F. Hyatt, 94 passed away Friday, November 8, 2024. Born August 16, 1930, the eldest daughter of Francis and Martha Hanlon in Syracuse, NY. She was a graduate of St. Vincent de Paul High School in Syracuse and attended Central City Business Institute. She went to work for the Glens Falls Insurance Company as a secretary to the manager and was active in the National Secretaries Association and President of the Syracuse Insurance Women’s Association.

Pauline loved to travel but with only two weeks’ vacation a year, there wasn’t much travelling done. The State Department advertised in the Syracuse newspaper that it was going to be in the Syracuse area recruiting for jobs with the Foreign Service. All of Pauline’s friends knew that she was going to apply for one of those jobs. She did and a few months later went to Washington to start training. Six months later, she left for the American Embassy in Asuncion, Paraguay. It was 10 degrees above zero in Washington and 20 hours later 100 degrees in Asuncion! She spent three years in Asuncion and during that time got to visit many of the countries in South America. Also while there she met a Marine, Gary Hyatt, and they were married in 1961, left the Foreign Service and settled down in Syracuse.

They were blessed with two children, Gary Jr. and Katie. There were no daycare programs during that time so Pauline decided to look for a night job so the babysitting would be covered. Answering a blind ad for a nighttime typist which turned out to be at the Syracuse Post Standard when the newspapers were switching from “hot type” to “cold type”, Pauline planned to work a few years and see how it went. 26 years later, she retired from the Syracuse Newspapers. 

She and Gary decided they had enough of the cold winters in Syracuse, so they moved to Myrtle Beach, SC. Gary golfed, and Pauline volunteered at the Myrtle Beach State Park along with entertaining a lot of their friends from up North. Since Pauline still loved to travel, they started touring the country. By the time they finished, they had been to all fifty states. About that time, their two grandchildren, Erik Jr. and Kristyn were in the picture, and they moved to Rochester, NY to be closer to them. It was a good move. Pauline was a fan of Syracuse University Basketball.

Pauline was predeceased by her husband of 50 years, Gary Hyatt, in 2011.

Surviving are her two children, Gary (Brenda) Hyatt of Altmar and Katie (Erik Johnson) Hyatt of West Henrietta; and two beloved grandchildren, Erik Johnson Jr. and Kristyn Johnson, both of Rochester; a sister, Kathleen Burke of North Syracuse and by several nieces and nephews.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Episcopal Church Home, 505 Mount Hope Ave., Rochester, NY 14620.

All Services are private and at the family’s convenience.