Laura Y. (Jeffery) Magee, 79 of Whitman, died Tuesday June 30th in Torrance, California, surrounded by her family, after a period of failing health. Laura was born on October 10, 1929 on a farm in New Brunswick, Canada. She was the daughter of the late Thomas and May Viola (Roberts) Jeffery. She was a graduate of Keene High School in New Hampshire. After high school she married and lived in the San Francisco Bay area for 15 years. She and her children moved to Massachusetts in 1963. Laura was a Whitman resident for over 30 years and most recently lived at the Whitman Senior Housing Center before moving to Torrance, California in 2004 to live with her daughter Laurie Spacone and her family.
She was an active member of the Whitman First Baptist Church and was proud of her Naturalized American Citizenship. Laura was a devoted, loving mother and worked tirelessly to raise her seven children on her own. In Whitman, she worked for many years as a bookkeeper for F. Cavicchi & Co. and then at Peaceful Meadows Farm. She was an avid reader and talented cake decorator. Laura never forgot a birthday; all her children have fond memories of their specially decorated birthday cakes! Her sense of humor, religious faith and determination never wavered despite overcoming many hardships. She loved to quilt, knit and do the NY Times crossword puzzle. Even after her stoke in 1995 she continued to knit and work on insanely complex picture puzzles.
She is survived by her loving children, Charles and Kathy Magee of Hanson, MA; Kathleen and David Cory of Portland, OR; Alice Magee of Knoxville, TN; Elaine Magee of Kirkland, WA; Diane and Herbert Althouse of Charlotte, NC; Laurie and Christopher Spacone of Torrance, CA. and her daughter-in-law Nancy Magee of Whitman, MA. She is also survived by her grandchildren Eric, Katherine and James Magee of Whitman, and Mitchell and Elizabeth Spacone of Torrance, California, and many first and second cousins, nieces and nephews. In addition she is survived by some of her brothers and sisters and their families; Glen Jeffery, Doris Warren, Iris Ferris, and Trevor Jeffery all of Canada and many lifelong friends. She was predeceased by her oldest son Thomas Magee and her brothers Peter, Donald and Merle Jeffery.
Laura Magee’s memorial service will be held at Blanchard’s Funeral Chapel on October 10, 2009 at 10am. Her ashes will be buried in the Jeffery family plot at St. Luke’s Anglican Church cemetery in Young’s Cove, New Brunswick, Canada. In lieu of flowers please send donations in her memory to St. Luke’s Anglican Church, C/O Lorna Jeffery, Treasurer, PO Box 31, Youngs Cove, New Brunswick, Canada B E4C 6B3.