Delores (DeFreitas) Machado, age 89, passed away peacefully on Thursday, October 16, 2025, surrounded by family members at the High Point Hospice House in Haverhill. She was the beloved wife of the late Edward Machado who passed away in 2007,
Born in Lowell on July 13, 1936, she was the daughter of the late Virginia (Farinha) and Joseph DeFreitas. She was a communicant of St. Anthony’s church and a graduate of Lowell High School. After raising her three children she returned to work as a Teacher’s Aide at the Washington School in Lowell until her retirement.
She loved traveling with her husband and especially enjoyed the trips they took to Italy, Aruba, and Las Vegas. She was also a lover of music and a talented singer. She sang in the St. Anthony’s choir for many years and also sang solo at many of the Lowell Highland Players shows back in the 1980s.
After her retirement, Delores and Eddie moved from Lowell to Dracut where they lived with their daughter, Christina, and her family. They loved being close to family and this move also meant they lived on the same side of the Merrimack River with all three of their children and grandchildren at that time.
Delores loved family; she loved sitting around Nana Machado’s kitchen table talking with her Machado side relatives and was also very close with her DeFreitas side brothers, sisters-in-law, nieces and nephew. She loved her three children whom she always referred to as “My Larry”, “My Chrissy” and “My Mary”.
She leaves behind her three children and their spouses: Larry and Trisha Machado, Chris and Todd Gordon, and Mary Machado and Tom Lynch. She also leaves behind her eight grandchildren and their spouses: Emily and Greg Costa, James and Ashley Machado, Billy Machado, Eddie Crockett and Elysia Niemi, Cameron Crockett, Jake and Julia Santos, Stephanie Santos and Fermin Martinez, and Isabele Gordon. She also leaves seven great grandchildren: Natalie and Kennedy Costa, Bode Machado, Cooper and Georgia Crockett, and Ben and Francine Santos.
In addition, she leaves behind her sister-in-law Irene DeFreitas along with her brother-in-law and sister-in-law Herb and Dorothy Brown, and her brother-in-law Frank Lorenzo as well as many nieces and nephews. In addition to her parents and husband, Delores was pre-deceased by her brothers Joseph and John DeFreitas and her brothers and sisters-in-law: John and Teresa Machado, Victor and Mary Sousa, Tony and Virginia Coviello, Joe Machado, Rose Lorenzo, Roselyn Machado, Patricia DeFreitas and Jeanne DeFreitas.
Delores recently moved into the Arbors Assisted Living facility in Dracut. While she only lived there for six months prior to her illness, she enjoyed the Arbors, the care they provided, and the people she met there. We would also like to thank the people at the High Point House in Haverhill for their compassionate care.
You are welcome to attend her calling hours on Monday, October 20, 2025 from 4 pm until 7 pm at the McDonough Funeral Home, 14 Highland Street, Lowell, MA 01852. Her funeral will begin on Tuesday, at the funeral home at 9 am, her funeral Mass will take place at 10 am at St. Anthony Church, 893 Central Street, Lowell; followed by procession for burial at St. Mary Cemetery. Find us on Facebook or visit www.McDonoughFuneralHome.com to leave the family a message of condolence at any time.