Evelyn Goff
New England Telephone Co. retiree, one of the original “Chelsea Girls”
Evelyn R. Goff, a lifelong resident of Chelsea, passed away at the Massachusetts General Hospital after a brief illness on January 11 at the age of 97.
She was raised in Chelsea, attended local schools and graduated from Chelsea High School with the Class of 1938. She married Lawrence P. Goff and began her career as a telephone operator with the New England Telephone and Telegraph Company.
Evelyn was one of the original “Chelsea Girls” working from the Chelsea exchange. She remained with the company throughout all the name changes, from NYNEX to Verizon, before taking retirement nearly 25 years ago.
Friends knew her as “Ebbie” and in her retirement years she remained active and involved in life whether playing games of Bocci Ball at Voke Park or trips to the casinos. Ebbie was a member of the Telephone Pioneers of America and an active participant at both the Chelsea Senior Center on Riley Way and the Rossetti-Cowen Senior Center in Revere. She won the Bocci Tournament held at Langone Park in the North End of Boston in 2006.
She was preceded in death by her beloved husband, Lawrence in 2002; her sister and brother in law, Ellen and Raymond G. Higgins and her brother and sister in law John and Theresa (LeClair) Hayes. She is survived by her loving and caring nieces: Maureen Nagle of Milton, Linda Molineaux of Melrose. Patricia and M. Kenneth Hyland of Stoneham, Patricia and Eugene O’Flaherty of Chelsea, Katherine and Stephen M. Melesciuc of Stoneham, Eileen and Matthew Piccione of Winchester, Kathleen Hyland Flett of Malden and Patricia Walsh of Saugus.
Funeral arrangements were by the Frank A. Welsh and Sons Funeral Home, Chelsea. Interment was at Woodlawn Cemetery, Everett.
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Carol Ann Bell
MGH retiree
Carol Ann (Harrington) Bell entered into eternal rest on Monday evening, March 13 at the Massachusetts General Hospital in Boston. She was 74 years old.
Born in Boston, the daughter of the late Catherine Harrington, Carol grew up in Charlestown and attended Charlestown Public Schools. She married her beloved husband Raymond J. Bell when she was a young adult. The couple settled in Chelsea to raise their family and it has been Carol’s home for the last 44 years. Carol and Raymond shared 38 years of marriage before his passing in 2003. Carol was an orthopedic billing specialist at the MGH in Boston. She dedicated almost 28 years of service when she retired in 2013. She will be greatly missed by all who loved her.
Carol was the beloved mother of Raymond Bell and his wife, Lisa and Michael Bell, all of Chelsea; sister of Thomas “Timmy” Gilgunn of Charlestown, Donald Gilgunn of Boston, Ann Ventola and her husband, Gerard of Quincy and Joan Gilgunn of Boston. She is also lovingly survived by two grandchildren, David and Victoria Bell of Chelsea.
A Funeral Mass was celebrated at St. Mary – St. Catherine of Siena Parish, Charlestown. Funeral arrangements were entrusted to the Carafa Family Funeral Home in Chelsea. Interment was private. Donations in Carol’s memory may be made to the JDRF New England Chapter Baystate Branch, 60 Walnut St. Wellesley Hills, MA 02481 or on-line at www.jdrf.org.
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William ‘Billy’ Surette
Of Saugus, formerly of Chelsea
William “Billy” Surette of Saugus, formerly of Chelsea, passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Wednesday, March 15. Billy was 50 years old.
Billy loved tattoos, hunting, deer scent making, fishing, shooting, wine making and spending time in his yard with the grill fired up, an ice cold beer in his hands, listening to Guns & Roses and his best girl Daisy by his side.
He is survived by his wife of 25 years, Sabrina Surette; his mother, Elizabeth (Doucette) Surette of East Boston and the late Joseph Surette. Billy was the brother of Joseph Surette of Saugus, Kenneth Surette of East Boston and Dorothy Pedi of Hudson, NH.
Funeral arrangements were entrusted to the Bisbee-Porcella Funeral Home, Saugus. In lieu of flowers, donations in Billy’s memory may be made to the MSPCA at MSPCA.org. For condolences, visit: www.BisbeePorcella.com.