Bernice M. Stevens, 89, of Lawrence, died peacefully Wednesday, December 12, 2012 in the Berkeley Nursing Center in Lawrence.
Bernice, daughter of the late Ellsworth and Norah (Moore) Stevens, was born in Lawrence on February 1, 1923. She was educated in Lawrence schools and was a graduate of Lawrence High School in 1940. She then furthered her education, graduating from the Lowell State Teachers College in 1944 and receiving her Masters degree from Suffolk University. She taught in the Waltham and West Medway, MA school districts. She was also a teacher at the Lawlor School in Lawrence from 1949 until her retirement in 1982.
A longtime communicant of St. Lucy’s Catholic Church in Methuen, she was also a member of the Lawrence College Club. In 1968, she became the first woman President of the Lawrence Teachers Union, was a member of St. Lucy’s Solidarity Club, the St. Claire League and the Massachusetts Retired Teachers Association.
She will be deeply missed by one sister; Marjorie Dadoly of Dracut; several nephews and nieces including her nephew Kevin Hill and his wife Judy of Hampstead, NH and her niece Jean O’Dowd of Methuen. She was predeceased by two sisters; Eleanor Coughlin and Carol O’Dowd.
Family and friends are warmly invited to attend her funeral service in the Kenneth H. Pollard Funeral Home, 233 Lawrence St., Methuen on Monday, December 17, 2012 at 10 AM. Rev. Christopher Casey will officiate. Burial will follow in Elmwood Cemetery, Methuen. Visiting hours are from 2-5 PM on Sunday, December 16. Those who wish to remember Bernice by making a memorial contribution in her memory are kindly asked to consider the Lawrence Teachers Union Scholarship Fund, 15 Union St., Everett Mills Building, 4th floor, Lawrence, MA 01840. For directions or to share a condolence with the family, please visit us online at www. pollardfuneralhome.com or visit Kenneth H. Pollard Funeral Home on Facebook. Kenneth H. Pollard Funeral Home is honored to assist the Stevens family with arrangements.