Obituary of Beverly Beaudet

Beverly J. (Smith) Beaudet passed away at the Saints Memorial Hospital in Lowell on Wednesday evening, April 16, 2008. The wife of 54 years of George R. Beaudet, she was 74 years old. Beverly was born in Lynn, the daughter of the late Kelsey and Dorothy Smith. She grew up and was educated in Marblehead. She had many wonderful memories of growing up in an ocean side community. She received her Associate’s Degree in Business from Nasson College in Maine. She had worked in the Burlington School system as a substitute teacher for a number of years. She found teaching and the interaction with students very rewarding. Beverly had made her home in Burlington for 45 years. She had recently moved to Tewksbury. After her husband George’s retirement, they would spend several months a year in Melbourne Beach, Florida. In summer months, she enjoyed exploring the beaches and the coast of Maine. Beverly’s legacy will be her family and the wonderful example she set for her children and grandchildren. She was an exceptional woman. When Beverly would ask, “How are You?” she really meant. She was warm, genuine, and never spoke an unkind word. She exemplified motherhood. She lived for husband, children, and grandchildren. She will be lovingly remembered. Beverly was the beloved wife of George R. Beaudet of Tewksbury. She was the loving mother of Gloria & her husband Donald Sheehan of Milford, NH, Gregory Beaudet & his wife Wendy of FL, Brian Beaudet & his wife Cheryl of Hudson, NH, Shelley & her husband Steve Rohan of Glastonbury, CT. She was the sister of Priscilla Paulson of FL and the late Dorothy Smith & Donald Smith. She was the proud grandmother of Jared, Donnie, & Jordan Sheehan of Milford, NH, Cori Beaudet of FL, Jacqueline, & Jessica Beaudet of Hudson, NH, and Cameron, Connor & Dylan Rohan of Glastonbury, CT. Funeral from the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn St., BURLINGTON (Exit 34 off Rt. 128, Woburn side) on Monday, April 21 at 9 a.m. Followed by a Mass of Christian Burial in St. Margaret’s Church, 111 Winn St., Burlington at 10 a.m. Visiting hours Sunday 2-4 p.m. & 6-8 p.m. Interment in Pine Haven Cemetery, Burlington. Memorials in Beverly’s name may be made to the American Cancer Society, 30 Speen St., Framingham, MA 01701. For directions, obituary & on-line guestbook see www.sullivanfuneralhome.net & www.saintmargaretschurch.net I'd like to thank you all for coming today. I know George, Brian, Gloria, Shelley, and Greg appreciate it. I have to say I was humbled and a little overwhelmed when my family asked me to come up here and say a few words about Bev. I wasn't sure where I could start, or what I could say that could do justice to who Bev was and what she meant to the people in her life. I have known Bev for 16 years, first as a guy dating her youngest daughter, then as her son in law, and finally as a father to some of her grandchildren. In every phase of our relationship, Bev surprised me with her openness, her warmth, and her complete commitment to her family and friends. When I first started dating Shelley, Bev completely opened her home to me. I was instantly welcome at holidays, on vacations, and in any of the myriad of other family activities that take place on a day to day basis. She treated me as part of the family right from the start The amazing thing is I don't think that happened because of anything special I did - I think it was just the way Bev made everyone feel. People felt comfortable around her and spending time with her was always enjoyable. Even so, it was only after I became her son-in-law that I really began to appreciate her. She was a huge help when we were first starting out, chipping in with everything from flowers for the front steps to a good beef stew recipe. In fact, I think she was a huge help to all her kids and their families. I know none of us were ever very far from her thoughts. We lived 2 towns over when we were first married and spent quite a bit of time with her and George, usually seeing them a couple of times a week. We would get together for dinner, have them over, or just get together to chat. The thing I remember most about Bev from that time was her positive take on everything. She had ups and downs like we all do, including some real loss, but whatever bad might be happening, Bev was ready to meet it with a joke and a smile, to get whatever laugh she could out of it, and to put it behind her so she could focus on the good things in her life. It was the quality that made her so easy to be around. You left any conversation with Bev feeling a little better about whatever might have been bothering you. It wasn't until Shelley and I started having a family that I got a chance to see Bev at her strongest. Being a grandmother was the highlight of Bev's life and she did a terrific job at it. She always made time to be with her grandkids and no detail of her their lives was too small for her to hear about and no task too mundane if she was doing it with them. Whether she was setting up rows of plastic dinosaurs at the beach, or painting rocks, or just sitting listening to an 8 yr old relate the latest gossip, she met each grandkid on their own level and saw each activity through their eyes. It was a special gift, and you could tell she really enjoyed it.. In fact, when I would talk to her, she would frequently tell me how she and George had sat around laughing about something one of the grandkids had said or done. It was clear the kids were never out of the forefront of her mind. She would go miles out of her way for an opportunity to see her grandkids and she always made time to let them share what was going on in their lives. From first steps to college graduations, soccer games to first communions, she reveled in every milestone and accomplishment of each of them. Anyone who knew her would revel right along with her since she bragged about her grandkids to anybody who would sit still long enough to listen. She made sure every one of the them felt they were special in her eyes. They're all going to miss their Grammy Bev. For myself, I think the best opportunity I had to spend a lot of time with Bev was in her natural habitat - the beaches up in Maine on a warm Summer's day. We have been vacationing as an extended family for as long as I have been in the family, and Bev's clan had been going up there to vacation for many years before that. She loved being up there - listening to the surf, walking on the beach, maybe doing just a little bit of shopping. It was perfect. In fact, When I think of Bev now, that's how I remember her - sitting in a sun hat, under an umbrella on a warm Summer day at the beach, a cold drink in one hand and a blueberry muffin in the other watching the kids playing in the sand or feeding the seagulls. Some of the best memories of my life come from those annual trips up to Maine. It won't be the same without her. I had an opportunity to see Bev the day before she passed away. What I found, looking beyond the hospital bed and the oxygen mask was the same old Bev, looking for a reason to laugh. We had a great time that afternoon, with me telling her about the latest antics of my kids and remembering funny things that had happened over the years, and her smiling and laughing. It was a perfect way to spend our last time together - the way we had spent so much time together over our 16 years of friendship. I am going to miss Bev. I am going to miss her easy going personality. I'm going to miss her sense of humor. I'm going to miss her zest for life. She was the glue that held this family together, and it's going to be tough to adjust to her being gone. While I will miss her forever, I am happy her suffering is behind her. I am happy that she is at peace. I am most happy that she passed away surrounded by the people she loved and who loved her most and with the memory of some of the best times of her life fresh in her mind. We love you Bev, and we'll miss you.