TAUNTON - Alvarina M. (Sousa) Matthews, wife of the late Curtis Matthews, lost a courageous fight with cancer on March 14, 2015.
She was 75 years old.
Alvarina was born and raised in Terceira, Azores, where as a young woman she worked on her family farm with her parents and siblings.
She met her husband while he was in the U.S. Air Force stationed at Lages Field.
They soon married and started a family.
After returning back to America when her husband’s military career ended, she was employed by Texas Instruments, and retired from the company in late 1991.
She was a devout Catholic, and attended mass at the Holy Family Parish in East Taunton.
Her religion even influenced her cooking, where she loved to cook many loaves of sweet bread the night before Easter.
Just prior to her illness, her Granddaughter Athena was able to fulfill Alvarina’s Christian lifelong dream of visiting the shrine, Our Lady of Fátima in Fátima, Portugal.
While in country, Alvarina also went back to Terceira to visit her homeland once more.
This trip was fulfilling spiritually and gave her peace.
She loved tending to her rose beds, as well as crocheting for her family.
However, her greatest love was raising her grandchildren and great grandchildren.
She often referred to them as “my babies”.
Alvarina was everyone’s Grandma.
She loved dancing and enjoyed her Portuguese heritage, which she celebrated often with her friends and family.
Any time the Chamarita music was playing, she was dancing.
She is survived by her children, Anna (Matthews) Monteforte and her husband Abel Viveiros, Frank Matthews and his wife Rose (Hairston) Matthews, Betty (Matthews) Rice and her husband Tom Dufault and Curtis Matthews; her grandchildren, Athena (Monteforte) Goulart, Robbie Monteforte, Melissa (Monteforte) Sinnott, Carlos Matthews, Jeremy Matthews, Joshua Rice, CJ Matthews and Tyler Matthews; her great grandchildren, Dylan and Aria Goulart, Robbie Monteforte, Jr. and Carlos Matthews Jr.; her sisters, Emily Borges, Merces Melo, Durvalina Correia, and Evelina Cunha along with several nieces, nephews and close friends.
She was also the sister of the late Manuel Sousa.
Her funeral will be held from the Silva Funeral Home, 80 Broadway, Taunton on Thursday, March 19th a 8:45 a.m. followed by a funeral mass at Holy Family Church at 10 a.m.
Burial will be at Pinehill Cemetery.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend.
Calling Hours will be held at the funeral home on Wednesday, March 18th from 5 to 8
p.m. www.silvafuneralhome.com.