Beatrice "Te Te" (Lopes) Lessa, 73, of New Bedford died Saturday September 4, 2004 at home after a long illness. She was the wife of the late Donald R. Lessa.
Born in New Bedford, daughter of the late Antonio and Barbara Gilda (Fortes) Lopes, she lived in New Bedford all of her life.
Mrs. Lessa was a parishioner of Our Lady of the Assumption Church.
She was formerly employed by AT&T in Fairhaven for several years until her retirement. She previously worked as a cook at St. Mary's Home in New Bedford for many years.
Mrs. Lessa enjoyed spending time with her grandchildren, entertaining her extended family and sewing. She was a lifetime member of the Cape Verdean Womens Social Club and a member of the Cape Verdean Ultra Marine Band Club. She was a graduate of New Bedford Vocational School Class of 1951.
Survivors include three sons, Anthony Lessa, and his wife Jo-Ann, and Henry Lessa , all of New Bedford, and Donald Lessa, Jr. of Fall River; a daughter, Lorna Lessa of New Bedford; four sisters, her twin sister, Barbara Offley, Elizabeth Allen, Anna Senna and Vivian Ramos, all of New Bedford; a brother, Joseph Lopes of New Bedford; nine grandchildren, Charlie, Sarah, Anthony, Jr., Christine, Heather, Ceasare, Cassaus, Diamond and Cain; three great-grandchildren, Dontay, Devaughn and Gabriella; several nieces and nephews including Joseph Antone who she raised.
She was the sister of the late Matilda Livramento, Manuel A. Lopes, John A. Lopes, Josepha Silva, Antonia Barboza, Gertrude Brito and Michael Fortes.
Funeral from the Saunders-Dwyer Home for Funerals, 495 Park St., New BedfordTuesday September 7, 2004 at 8 AM.Funeral Mass at Our Lady of the Assumption Church at 9 AM.Relatives and friends are invited to attend. Visiting hours will be on Monday September 6, 2004 from 4-8 PM. In lieu of flowers, remembrances may be made to Our Lady of the Assumption Church, 47 South Sixth St., New Bedford, MA 02740.
Eulogy for my Mother, Beatrice Lessa Like this generation had their 9/11/01, my loss of innocence came with the assassination of President of John F. Kennedy. At that time I was in the second or third grade of what was then called St. Mary’s school. I didn’t quite understand what was happening, but I knew it was a tragic event. I came home crying for my mother. My mother then took me outside (on the steps of the back porch, the only place that came close to privacy at 390), and explained to me that some people in the world were evil, but that most were good. She then told me about having faith in God and that God always triumphs over evil. Even though I had recited the Lord’s prayer many times before, this was the first time she explained it to me as only a mother could trying to comfort a frighten little child. She further stated that if I couldn’t believe in God, to believe in her. That was the birth of my spiritual life. This was the first of many life lines this woman would cast my way through out my entire life. To the grandchildren: Your grandmother was so full of life that we, her children, couldn’t keep up with her. (It wasn’t like it is today where parents tire of their kids, she wore us out.) Your Great grandmother (Nana’s mother) was born and raised on a large farm in Cape Verde and that is where your roots are. When she arrived here in the U.S. they continued to farm. Your grand mother loved to be outside, except during the winter, (she used to say, "God didn’t make me this dark to be out in the cold.") Once it was warm enough she would take me out into the garden which included Auntie Maimy’s yard, all the way down to the avenue where we had a huge garden. I would be at her side pulling weeds and picking the fruits and vegetables. It was hard work but she always made it a fun-learning experience for me. We also had chickens, goats, geese and rabbits. (There was also a lot in South Dartmouth, off Milton Street, where we kept the hogs.) She loved animals and as a child these animals were my toys. (Little did I know that they would one day become my dinner. Joey, Carly and Robby and myself would jump on the back of our billy goat, grab him by the horns, and have our own little rodeo). I wouldn’t trade that experience for any of your X-boxes, play stations or video games. You can have them. Another favorite place of her was the beach. She loved to swim. I remember the first time I swam out to the raft. As I dog-paddled, she swam on her back in front of me, encouraging me, and with that encouragement we made it. Later that summer I challenged her to race out to the raft and lost. It took many hours of swimming lessons (at the old Y on No. Sixth St. where the courthouse is now located,) and two more summers before she let me beat her. Although we were poor we always had plenty of food to eat because that farm produced so much, that in the fall everyone would come over and we would begin the canning process. I remember that down in the cellar we had thousands of mason jars filled with fruits and vegetables that would last the whole winter. My mother was an advocate for the disadvantaged, she would always root for the under dog. She believed that the more obstacles some had to overcome the more they would cherish their accomplishments. Nothing of any real value was given freely, you had to earn it! While some in the community were shouting “burn baby burn�, my mother’s cry was “learn baby learn�. I remember the summer before I was about to enter the seventh grade, I took on a double paper route in order to earn enough money so I could buy my first pair of Converse All-stars, because my goal that coming school year was to be the only seventh grader to make the basketball team. At that time Jr. High included the ninth grade. So with the money I earned from that paper route, I went uptown to buy those All-stars. When I got home and my mother found out I paid $9.95 back in the box they went and off to Charlie’s sports store we went to return them. On the way there she explained to me that she wasn’t sending me to school to play basketball, she was sending me to get an education. On our way home we stopped at Kresge’s 5& dime and she picked out three pairs of sneakers for $8.95 and gave me $1.00. Later that fall when report cards came out, and to every ones surprise, I passed in all my subjects. She then bought me those All-Stars, this was just as basketball tryouts were to begin. I did go on to be the only seventh grader on the team that year. You see she valued education and wanted all her children to graduate from High school with good enough grades to be accepted into college. Although none of us earned a degree, we went on to college. She held up her end of the deal. My mother would never say that we were disadvantaged, poor yes, but in no way would she let us think we were disadvantaged. Before inclusion or diversity were even concepts, my mother would meet community and organizational leaders and tell them how the advantaged children were being denied a well rounded experience because they were only being exposed to one culture. This strategy enabled me to attend several different summer camps. It was at these camps where I was exposed to things like rope bridge building, horse back riding, sailing, fishing and power boating. With my mother at my side being disadvantaged was not an option. Another time I remember was during the civil unrest of the late 60’s and early 70’s. My mother along with Auntie Minnie, Ben Rose, Mary Barros & Manny Costa brought me to meet Senator Ed Brooke. They were no fan of his, he being a Republican and all. Boy did they let him have it. A couple of months later I (along with at lease 12 others from my neighborhood) received a letter from Senator Brooke’s office informing us that we were going off to Ft. Devens to work in the mess hall for the summer. That encounter with him ensured me a summer job for the next three years. To my brothers: Even though I was far from being the perfect son, Ma would lovingly refer to me as her #1 son. Let me assure you that it was only a birth right. We all had a separate but equal part of her heart. To Auntie Barbie, my second birth mother: For those who don’t know, when my mother went into labor carrying me, Auntie Barbie suddenly and for no medical reason became very ill with labor pains. She told me that she felt the same pains my mother felt. I must have put her through a lot of pain because it took 18 hours for me to be delivered. Even then, it was hard for me to leave my mother. How one could be so blessed when they are saying good bye to one birth mother and yet still have another. My birth caused her more pain than the birth of her own children. Finally, to my sister, truly the one and only: As a young boy I remember the passing of Granny. Her passing was almost exactly like it was this past Saturday morning. It was in the very same room, she was in a hospital bed just like ma. The bed was in the exact same position of the room, they both had wheel chairs and she was surrounded by her children and grandchildren just as it was this past Saturday. On the day Granny passed away Ma took over as the Matriarch of 390 and the spirit it carried. That spirit is now under your guardianship. With your generosity, patience and tolerance no one is more capable than you to keep the spirit of 390 alive. I will be there to help in any way I can. To all our friends: Our Father has prepared a grand Mansion with rooms in the Heavens for us. One of these rooms has an address of 390 Purchase St. I always ended all my conversations with my mother with `I love you' to which she would respond, “I love you more�. With that I could not argue! MAY GOD BLESS EACH AND EVERYONE, Anthony Lessa.
For additional copies, E-mail me at: [email protected]_