Bethea "Ann" (Smith) Roberts

PAXTON – Bethea “Ann” (Smith) Roberts, 81, passed away peacefully on Monday, April 1, 2019 in her childhood home in Paxton, with her devoted husband Paul by her side, after a courageous battle with cancer. Ann was born on February 22, 1938, a daughter of the late Bernard W. and Gudren (Johnson) Smith. She attended Paxton Center School and was a graduate of Wachusett Regional High School.

As a teenager, she met Paul of Worcester on a blind date, and thus began a love affair for the ages. They married in 1957, and after living in Shrewsbury and Rutland for several years, they moved back to Ann’s childhood home in Paxton where they remained for the rest of Ann’s life.
Ann was an avid gardener, passionate baker and world traveler. Over the years many a motorist slowed down to see her spectacular array of flowers in her Grove Street yard. Her passion for baking was incredible, and her famous apple pies won the Grand prize at the Spencer Fair. Ann’s love of traveling took her around the world with Paul, and they particularly loved their trips to Ireland, Pennsylvania Dutch Country, summer trips to Cape Cod, and the mountains of New England in the fall. And nothing could bring a smile to Ann’s face faster than a “garden tour” with her grandchildren or a trip to an area casino with her best friend Shirley.
Most of all, Ann was a loving wife, mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother who brought smiles and warmth to everyone she met. She will be lovingly missed by her entire family who will never forget her unconditional love.

Ann is survived by her husband of 62 years, Paul Roberts; three sons, Timothy P. Roberts of Mashpee, Christopher L. Roberts of Spencer, and Peter P. Roberts of Paxton; two daughters, Heidi A. Dumas and her husband, Peter W. of West Boylston and Holly E. Roberts and her wife, Nancy Arena of Lowell; eleven grandchildren, Lindsay and her husband Ben Wittwer, Andrew Dumas, Jacqueline and Emily Roberts, John Nowak and his wife Allison, Cole, Kassidy, Cameron, and Kadyn Roberts, and Benjamin and Devon Bassett; and her great-grandson, Jakob Wittwer. She was predeceased by her two sisters, Bernadine Rochette and Jane Michalak.

Relatives and friends are invited to gather with Ann’s family from 5 to 7 p.m. on Thursday, April 4 in the Miles Funeral Home, 1158 Main Street, Holden. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, April 5 at 10 a.m. in St. Columba Church, 10 Richards Avenue, Paxton. Burial will follow at Worcester County Memorial Park, 217 Richards Avenue, Paxton. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to VNA Hospice & Palliative Care, 199 Rosewood Drive, Suite 180, Danvers, MA 01923 or via www.vnacare.org or to St. Benedict’s Monastery, 1012 Monastery Road, Snowmass, CO 81654.