Leonard Brennan remembers the day as if it were yesterday.

He was playing baseball with his father and brothers when the ball rolled near where his mother was watching. She picked it up and threw a bullet back toward her son.

"She threw it like Whitey Ford," Brennan said, invoking the name of the great pitcher for the New York Yankees. "It shocked me, the punch that hit the glove. My mother had a heck of an arm. The ball snapped the glove like I had never heard before. I said, 'Where did you learn to throw like that?'"

Turns out, Theresa M. Brennan learned to throw like Whitey Ford from another Yankees great – Hall of Famer Joe DiMaggio. While serving in the Women's Army Air Corps in California, Brennan participated on a women's baseball team. DiMaggio was a friend of the coach, and often would show up at practice to offer a few pointers to the lady sluggers.

With that single toss, Leonard Brennan's mom made an impression on the young boy that lasted a lifetime.

"She was one tough cookie," he said. "She was always fairly tenacious, and never bashful."

Theresa Brennan, 87, of Gorham died Oct. 31 at the Gorham House.

In addition to her love of sports, another passion in her life was the Democratic Party. She volunteered for the party, and also served as chair of the Board of Voter Registration in Bangor.

She and her husband, Robert, often hosted local politicos at their home in Bangor, where they lived and raised their family before moving to Gorham. She attended the inauguration of President Lyndon B. Johnson in Washington, but it was the late nights of local political talk that her son most remembers.

"I used to complain about all the meetings she had in our house. But looking back, a lot of the people who stopped by turned out to be important figures in Maine politics, from Ken Curtis to Joe Brennan to George Mitchell," Brennan said.

His mother was active in the Democratic Party right up until her final days, he said, and never allowed her love of the party to wane.

"When Ted Kennedy died, my mom was at Maine Med, and we thought she was going to die at that time. She was really sick, and I heard a prayer come out. I said, 'Are you worried about dying?' She said, 'No, this one is for Teddy.'"

Her wartime service involved assisting wounded soldiers upon their return to the United States. She was stationed in California, and nursed wounded soldiers back to health.

During her assignment in California, she won commendation for saving a young boy. "The child was either hit by a car or a train, but it took off a finger, or a hand," Leonard Brennan said, recounting the story. "I have this wonderful article from Los Angeles about this woman saving a child's life. That was my mom. She went to the hospital with him, and got recognized for her effort."

In recognition of her military service, a private memorial service and interment with military honors is scheduled for Friday at Maine Veterans Memorial Cemetery in Augusta.

In a larger sense, her entire life was dedicated to helping others, her son said, noting that his mom also was involved in raising funds for cancer research.

"My mother was someone who never gave up," he said. "She lived life to the fullest. I don't think there was ever a day that she didn't live life and think of somebody else. She always said, 'Life is to be lived, and you live until you go.' You work hard and you think of others. That was her motto."

Staff Writer Bob Keyes can be contacted at 791-6457 or at:

bkeyes@pressherald.com