Obituary of Cora Higson

LINK to funeral service

Clicking on the link (above) will bring you to our facebook page (sign-in is NOT required).  A livestream of the funeral service will begin a few minutes before noon on Saturday, January 7th.

Cora Higson, a former book seller and hairdresser passed away on December 28, 2022 at the age of 64. Cora was born in 1958 with a congenital heart defect. Though facing this tough challenge, she was a trooper. She underwent open heart surgery at the age of 7 and lived a normal life for the next 40 years. Cora was born in Worcester and raised in Dudley MA.  She graduated from Shepherd Hill Regional High School in 1976. Cora went on to graduate from Framingham State University.

While growing up, Cora was an avid singer. She had the honor of singing with the Worchester Chorus and touring with them. Some of their notable performances included venues like Carnegie Hall and then touring the United Kingdom. Their annual performance of the Messiah at Mechanics Hall in Worchester was always a holiday favorite.

Cora and her mom loved to travel together. They loved to take cruises around the world. Some of their favorites included the Caribbean, two Alaskan cruises, and multiple trips both from Boston to Montreal and from Montreal back to Boston.

Around Christmas time in 1992, Cora was transferred to the Lauriat’s bookstore in Burlington at the Burlington Mall. While there, Cora met a co-worker named Bob, and the two bonded. In March of 1993 Cora and Bob began dating. They were wed in 1996 and moved into Cora’s Framingham apartment. Cora and Bob built a wonderful life together and loved to travel. They made an annual trip to Colonial Williamsburg Virginia. The two would drive down and spend a week there. The drive was improved from 14 hours down to 9 when they got their first GPS. While down there, Cora made friends with everyone. She treated all of the staff as best friends and they grew to remember her and treat her and Bob the same. Cora made friends with strangers on tour buses and was always helpful to give them directions to her favorite sites. Cora’s love for others grew even more when she and Bob welcomed home their first dog and her first ever pet, Sammy. When they brought Sammy home, Bob remembers Cora saying, “How can I loved something so much that I’ve only known for 24 hours!?”

In 2004, while on a cruise with her mom in Montreal, Cora entered heart failure. She was air lifted to Brigham and Women's Hospital. She was able to recover and return home to Framingham, but she required many expensive medications. Cora became an advocate for Senate Bill 2096, a bill which would limit the out of pocket expenses for at home medicines. She was published in MetroWest Daily News speaking about her experience in an effort to raise awareness for the cause. The bill was sponsored by Senator Anthony W. Petruccelli of East Boston. The bill was passed in 2014.

Cora Higson was the beloved wife of Bob Higson of Framingham, MA. She was the dear cousin of Lee, Ken and Kurt Alton, Kathy Alton, Bruce Alton, and Elizabeth Grosspeter. She was the loving first cousin once removed to Jim Barber.  Cora was a loving daughter-in-law to Claudia Higson and a caring sister-in-law to Cathy Johnson, Carla Beaulieu, and Jerry Higson. She was the loving dog-mother to Wiley.

A memorial visitation for Cora will be held at the Edward V. Sullivan Funeral Home, 43 Winn Street, Burlington, MA 01803 on January 7th from 11:00am to 12:00pm, immediately followed by a memorial service.

In lieu of flowers, please consider donating to the American Heart Association .

For the online tributes, memorial video, and service information, please visit www.sullivanfuneralhome.net.