Vera Gertrude (Peterson) Beacienski, age 93, died May 25, 2020, at her home in Taunton with her two daughters at her side following a long hospitalization.
Born in Marshfield, MA, on April 10, 1927, Vera was the daughter of Sidney and Alice (McPhee) Peterson. A member of the Duxbury High School class of 1944, Vera began her nurses training with the U.S. Cadet Nurse Corps, a program that recruited young women from all backgrounds as it sought to alleviate severe nursing shortages during World War II. Vera graduated from the New England Hospital for Women and Children as a registered nurse in 1947 and began a rewarding life dedicated to nursing and serving others at New England Hospital from 1947 to 1953 and at Pawtucket Memorial Hospital from 1953 to 1962. From 1972 to 1988 she was employed as a supervisor for the Homemaker-Home Health Aide Service for Visiting Nurse of Southeastern Mass.
She was married to Frederick Beacienski of Taunton, MA, in 1951. The couple made their home in Taunton for 48 years until his death in 1999. She was a communicant of Immaculate Conception Church.
The oldest daughter of seven children, Vera was devoted to her immediate and large extended family, many who called her by the nickname “Pete” after her maiden name. She and her husband were avid day travelers, motoring the picturesque backroads and historic attractions of New England and Eastern Canada, and would think nothing of hopping into the car and heading to Maine for lunch. She was immensely proud of her house, and for many years threw a celebration for family and friends who gathered to cheer the Taunton Christmas Parade as it passed by her front door. She loved flowers and birds and exploring historic homes, was a voracious reader and a skilled sewer, donated to immeasurable charities, and was known by many in Taunton for her gentle spirit and amiable nature.
She is survived by her daughters, Karen White and husband Curtis of Taunton and Cheryl Monteiro and husband Paulo of Taunton; four grandchildren, Jarrod White and Gelsey White of Taunton, Mitchell Monteiro and wife Emily of Norton, MA, and Matthew Monteiro and wife Emily of Attleboro Falls, MA, and three great-grandchildren, Sophie and Charlotte Monteiro of Norton and Everett Monteiro of Attleboro Falls; one sister, Virginia Turner of Kingston; a brother-in-law, Edward Goldrick of Taunton; and numerous nieces and nephews.
Other brothers and sisters included the late Edward Peterson, Marion Wedge, Barbara Govoni, John Peterson, and Margaret Peterson.
A private family burial will be held at St. Joseph’s Cemetery in Taunton. In lieu of flowers, donations in Vera’s memory may be made to the Dana-Farber Cancer Institute, PO Box 849168, Boston MA 02284. Her family encourages friends and loved ones to share remembrances of this selfless and greathearted woman in the online guestbook.