Helen J. (Brosnan) Pierce

HELEN J. (BROSNAN) PIERCE – in Woburn, May 9th. Beloved wife of the late Joseph R. Pierce. Devoted mother of Robert W. of Woburn, Walter F. of Derry, NH, and his late wife Roberta, William and his wife Linda of FL, James and his wife Colleen of Derry, NH, and Paul and his wife Doreen of Tewksbury. Dear sister of Donald Brosnan and his wife Virginia of Quincy and the late John, Margaret, Elizabeth, and Eileen Brosnan. Loving grandmother of Rachel Bonin, Jennifer, Melissa, Hannah, MacKenzie, Jeffrey, Andrew, and the late Joseph Pierce, and great-grandmother of Maddie, Sam, and Sydney. Funeral from the Lynch-Cantillon Funeral Home, 263 Main Street, Woburn, on Wednesday, May 12th at 9:15 a.m. Funeral Mass in St. Anthony Church, 851 Main Street, Woburn, at 10. Calling hours Tuesday from 4 to 8 p.m. Interment in Woodbrook Cemetery, Woburn. Donations may be made in Helen’s memory to the VNA of Middlesex-East & Visiting Nurse Hospice, 607 North Avenue, Suite 17, Wakefield, MA 01880.

OBITUARY:

Helen J. Pierce, a longtime resident of North Woburn, passed away peacefully at her home Sunday morning, May 9th, at the age of eighty-seven. She was the beloved wife of the late Joseph R. Pierce, who died ten years ago.

Born and raised in Dorchester, she was the daughter of the late Stephen and Julia (Power) Brosnan. She was a 1938 graduate of Jeremiah E. Burke High School, and continued her education at Boston Clerical School. She went to work for Sears in Boston, where she remained for five years before she married and took up residence with her husband Joe in Dorchester.

In 1953 they moved to Woburn, where they raised their five sons. Helen was dedicated to her family and especially enjoyed camping trips to Prince Edward Island as well as Maine and New Hampshire. Family reunions at George’s Island were always a special occasion. In her leisure time she enjoyed playing Bingo at the South End Italian Club and St. Mary’s Church in Winchester, crocheting and knitting, and working on crossword and jigsaw puzzles. A voracious reader, she particularly loved historical novels and mysteries.

Along with her husband Joseph, she was preceded in death by a brother, John Brosnan, and three sisters, Margaret, Elizabeth and Eileen Brosnan, her grandson, Joseph Pierce, and her daughter-in-law, Roberta Pierce.

Surviving are five sons: Robert W. of Woburn, Walter F. of Derry, New Hampshire, William and his wife Linda of Florida, James and his wife Colleen of Derry, New Hampshire, and Paul and his wife Doreen of Tewksbury, and a brother, Donald Brosnan and his wife Virginia of Quincy. She was also the loving grandmother of Rachel Bonin, Jennifer, Melissa, Hannah, MacKenzie, Jeffrey, and Andrew Pierce, and great-grandmother of Maddie, Sam, and Sydney.

The funeral will be held from the Lynch-Cantillon Funeral Home, 263 Main Street, Woburn, on Wednesday, May 12th at 9:15 a.m., followed by a Funeral Mass in St. Anthony Church, 851 Main Street, Woburn, at 10. Interment will follow in Woodbrook Cemetery, Woburn.

Calling hours at the funeral home are on Tuesday from 4 to 8 p.m.

Donations may be made in Helen’s memory to the VNA of Middlesex-East & Visiting Nurse Hospice, 607 North Avenue, Suite 17, Wakefield, MA 01880.