PORTSMOUTH – Edna Lucy McCullough Lyons, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and the widow of Cdr. John Joseph Lyons, USN (Ret.), died Monday, Jan. 19, 2026, after a period of declining health. She was 94.

Known from childhood as Teddy, she was born April 19, 1931, in Camden, N.J. She was the daughter of John Patrick McCullough and Matilda Kolb McCullough. The youngest of five siblings, Teddy was raised by her widowed mother after her father died when she was 4 years old.

She graduated in 1949 from Camden Catholic High School in Camden, N.J. After graduation, she went to work for Bell Telephone in Philadelphia and proudly brought company stock to her marriage.

Teddy and her husband-to-be, Jack, were classmates at Camden Catholic and were married in 1957 at St. Joseph Catholic Church in Camden. Their marriage of nearly 65 years was blessed with four children, one of whom survived their first eight weeks in the neonatal intensive care unit of Philadelphia Naval Hospital.

Teddy and Jack promoted an adventurous life for their family during Jack's service in the Navy. They were stationed in Washington, D.C.; Alameda, Calif.; San Diego; Charleston, S.C.; and Taipei, Taiwan, before they were transferred to Norfolk Naval Shipyard in Portsmouth, Jack's final duty station, in 1970. With each duty station, Teddy advocated for family education and immersion into the Navy and surrounding community.

The Lyons family were longtime parishioners at Holy Angels Catholic Church and later at the Church of the Resurrection, both in Portsmouth.

Throughout her marriage, Teddy was a full-time mom – and kept all of the balls in the air for the family. Days consisted of managing the household and carpooling children to practices, music lessons, extracurricular clubs and jobs.

Throughout those busy days she would have dinner on the table nightly, including a salad and homemade dessert (often with a secret healthy ingredient). Gathering around the dining room table for dinner was a nonnegotiable and valuable time for the family.

Throughout her adult life, Teddy was a volunteer, early on at the Navy-Marine Corps Relief Society and other military services and later at her children's schools, Portsmouth Catholic Elementary School and Portsmouth Catholic High School. She was a consistent presence for decades in the school cafeteria and the concession stand for basketball games. Teddy became part of a lovely group of PCHS parents who remained lifelong friends.

When her children were older and self-sufficient, Teddy began pursuing her own interests. She earned an associate's degree in early childhood education from Tidewater Community College. She then taught preschool to local 4-year-olds over the course of several years at The Kittridge School.  She became "Ms. Teddy" to hundreds of local families in Portsmouth, many of whom remember her fondly.

After she retired from teaching, Teddy went to work as a docent at the Hermitage Museum & Gardens in Norfolk. The position was a perfect blend of her love of art, education and botany. During her time at the Hermitage, Teddy cultivated many personal friendships and had regular social activities with her fellow docents.

One overarching theme throughout Teddy's family life also was a favorite expression of hers: "Roots and Wings." She most certainly was the roots of the family, by allowing for and actively supporting each family member to pursue their own interests, goals and adventures. She was the backbone and glue that held her family together. She was "home" in every significant way that one can have that experience.

Teddy sacrificed throughout her life. She always prioritized her family over her own interests but also demonstrated the joie de vivre of pursuing her own passions of health and fitness, art, education, lifelong friendships, and active grandparenting.

In addition to her husband, she was preceded in death by her siblings: Katherine "Kitty" Miller, Patrick McCullough, Joseph "Buddy" McCullough and Carolyn Lafferty.

Teddy is survived by her sons, John P. Lyons (Anita) of Kill Devil Hills, N.C., and Timothy J. Lyons (Conchitina) of Alexandria; her daughters, Elaine M. Lyons of Portsmouth and Patricia L. Reilly (Peter) of Chesapeake; and numerous nieces and nephews in New Jersey who adore their Aunt Teddy.

She also is survived by five grandchildren, to whom she was devoted: Brynn Reilly (Adam Bloodworth) of Austin, Texas; Alison Reilly Tisdel (Daniel) of Newport News; Casey Reilly (Stephen Davis) of Hampton; Aidan Lyons and Evan Lyons of Alexandria; and by great-grandsons Elliott Tisdel and Miles Tisdel of Newport News.

A Mass of the Resurrection will be celebrated 11:00 a.m. Wednesday, February 4, at the Church of the Resurrection, 3501 Cedar Lane in Portsmouth. The family will receive friends at the church an hour prior.

Burial will follow at a later date at Albert G. Horton Memorial Veterans Cemetery, 5310 Milners Road in Suffolk.

The family requests that memorial donations be made to either of the following: Children's Hospital of the King's Daughters in support of the hospital's NICU program; or ForKids in Chesapeake.

The family also would like to express their sincerest gratitude for the loving care provided to Teddy, first at home by Tee Dykes and later by the staff of Commonwealth Living at Churchland House. As was her nature, Teddy cultivated loving relationships through kindness, wisdom, humor, and a little chocolate with many of her caregivers during the past few years.

Condolences may be registered at BWFosterFuneralHome.com.