Claire McGinnis Stephenson of Manhattan, Southampton and Palm Beach died on April 13 in Palm Beach, after a short illness. She was 86.
The daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Felix Signoret McGinnis, a prominent San Francisco family, Ms. McGinnis was born on March 7, 1929, and was the youngest of six children. She attended the Convent of the Sacred Heart in San Francisco and graduated from Finch College in New York City. She was known for the love she had for her large family, her Cavalier King Charles spaniels, and her exquisite style and grace, survivors said.
She was predeceased by her husband, Garrick, with whom she established the Garrick C. Stephenson Foundation to support charity organizations in Southampton and elsewhere on the South Fork. She is survived by her children, Marina Obolensky and husband Bill Folwick of Wisconsin, Ivan Obolensky and wife Mary Jo of California, David I. Obolensky and wife Catharine of Nashville, Claire E. Stephenson of France, and Christina Stephenson and husband Bernard Roche of Brussels; and stepchildren, Mary Stephenson of Southampton and Florida, and Serena Stephenson and husband Tom Molloy of Cincinnati; and many grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Funeral services will be private.
Memorial donations may be made to Discalced Carmelite Nuns Monastery, 1101 North River Road, Des Plaines, IL 60016, or to Our Lady of Poland Roman Catholic Church, 35 Maple Street, Southampton, NY 11968.