Today my wife, Betty Soneson Principato died. Actually, probably not really today as you read this. Her official date of death was 15 June 2014. She didn’t really lose her battle with Colon Cancer because she really never had a chance. She died believing in a merciful god and we pray that she has found peace in a special place reserved just for her. If there is such a place, she certainly deserves it.
Betty was born in Middletown, Connecticut on 24 August 1945. She was the middle daughter of J. Melvin & Gladys Spear Soneson. Her older sister is Joann Soneson Matulewicz and her younger sister is Polly Soneson Abbott. She grew up and attended schools in Greenfield, Massachusetts and after graduation from high school, attended and graduated from Chandler College for Women where she made several lifelong friends. After several years of working and travelling the world, she married Joe “Bunny” Principato in 1970 and eventually they had three children: Michael, Sarah, and Jane. These three eventually went on to marry Heather, Mike, and Peter and each couple had two children: Anna, Nick, Eliza, Erik, Elena, and Ally. Betty adored each and every one of these grandchildren and was always there to “babysit”, sing Grammy’s Pie song, or just to play.
After seeing her youngest (Jane) safely ensconced in full time middle school, Betty took a “mothers hours” job as the administrative assistant to the chair of the Education Department at Rivier College in Nashua, New Hampshire. She remained at this position for the next 20 years until 2008 when she retired. During these 20 years, the Education Department grew from a tiny office run out of a trailer to a multi-building, highly staffed facility which is the pride of Rivier. It is with much pride that we say that Betty was responsible for more than a little of its success.
In retirement, Betty found even more time to spend with her children, their spouses, and her grandchildren. And, though both she and I had separately seen a bit of the world (Europe, Hawaii, Kuwait City, Saudi Arabia, Paris, London, Alaska, Canada, St. Thomas, Iceland, and most of the US, to name a few), together we became world travelers once again to her delight. Betty especially loved cruising and we took several cruises to Alaska, Bermuda, and the Mediterranean. Betty was also inducted into the DAR in 2012.
So that’s a short summary of who my wife was: a friend, a mother, a grandmother, a caretaker, a worker, a lover and my whole life. There never was a sweeter, gentler, kinder person than Betty. The world and I are sadder for her loss.
If you would like to remember her in some way, send a donation to Dana-Farber or any Colon Cancer organization. The next person who contracts this terrible killer will be glad for your contribution and so would Betty.