Duncan Francis McGonagle, 86, of The Villages Florida, passed away on February 1, 2026, at home in The Villages Florida with his loving wife, Gloria, at his side.
Duncan was born on May 6, 1939, the only child of John and Kathleen McGonagle, in Red Hook, Brooklyn, where he was raised until he enlisted for four years at the age of 17 in the US Navy as a Corpsman* (*a medical specialist who provides medical care to Navy and Marine Corps personnel).
For his Navy service, Duncan was awarded two medals, Armed Forces Expeditionary Medal-Vietnam and National Defense Service Medal.
After completing his four-year enlistment, Duncan enrolled in medical school in California with the intention of becoming a physician. That plan, however, was foreshortened within one year by him being recalled to active duty in the Navy and sent to Vietnam.
After completing service in Vietnam, Duncan returned to the United States, and entered a career in law enforcement in California, eventually returning to New York to take care of his mother. His decision, at that time, to volunteer in the NYPD’s Auxiliary Police Program would change the entire course of his destiny. It was in that program that Duncan would meet his future wife Gloria, also a volunteer in the program, whom he called “The Great Love of My Life,” and with whom he would spend more than forty years of his life.
They got married on December 5,1987 and Duncan began what he called his “second career.” He went to the College of Staten Island and obtained a degree in Nursing, then working as a Psych Nurse in addiction. He was an American Nurses Association Credentialing Center Certified Psychiatric-Mental Health Nurse, as well as a Certified Addictions RN with a career in administration in major NYC hospitals.
Duncan retired in 2006 and they bought their house in 2016 in The Villages.
Duncan is survived by his wife, Gloria, his son, Jason Rowley and his two grandsons, Jamison and Liam, of Eagle, Idaho.