1926
Helen
2013
Helen (Gustafson) Fifield
June 22, 1926 — October 17, 2013
Biography
STERLING - Helen Derby (Gustafson) Fifield, 87, died on Thursday, October 17, 2013. Helen was born in 1926 in Worcester, the youngest child of Harry and Ruby (Derby) Gustafson. She graduated from North High School in 1944 and earned her bachelor’s degree in 1948 from Mount Holyoke College, where she developed lifelong friendships. During her freshman year following a train trip back to Worcester, Helen met the love of her life, George C. Fifield, on the steps of Union Station. Their love affair and happy life together lasted nearly seven decades.
Helen spent the first twenty years of her marriage as an Army wife, raising four children and following George around the globe to many military postings including Japan and Germany. Upon retirement from military life, Helen and George settled in Holden where they became involved in the greater Worcester community.
Helen was as an active and committed volunteer, serving on many local boards: Age Center; Goddard/Homestead; International Center of Worcester; Memorial Foundation for the Blind; RSVP; Sterling Women’s Club; and the East Lake Waushacum Association in Sterling. She was also a member of the Worcester Art Museum, the Museum of Russian Icons, and the Museum of Fine Arts. In addition, Helen worked as the State Advocate for the Office for Children, and then served as the Worcester County Advocate for the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health. In her later years, she enjoyed selling real estate for several local firms.
She and George moved in 1979 to their beloved cottage on the shores of Lake Waushacum in Sterling, spending thirty years pursuing her other long-term interests: knitting for her extended family and disabled veterans; playing the piano at family events; teaching her children and grandchildren to swim, waterski and canoe; hosting the annual family reunion; indulging her fascination with birds; and perfecting her special chocolate sauce.
She will be sorely missed by her husband, her nine grandchildren and her four children: George Jr. and his wife Suvanna of California; Peter Fifield and his wife Liberta of Spencer; Nancy Jeppson and her husband Eric of Worcester; and Janet Fifield of Kingston. She was predeceased by her brother, Harry Gustafson Jr. and her sister, Esther Torberg.
Relatives and friends are invited to celebrate her life by attending a calling hour from 10 - 11am on Saturday, October 26th at the Miles-Sterling Funeral Home and Tribute Center, 100 Worcester Road, Sterling, followed by a funeral service at noon at the First Church of Christ, Unitarian, 725 Main Street, Lancaster. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a charity of one’s choice. To share a memory or to offer an online condolence, please sign the guestbook on this page.
A Calling Hour
Saturday
October 26, 2013
,
10 a.m.
- 11 a.m.
at
Miles-Sterling Funeral Home and Tribute Center
Click for Map and Directions
Funeral Service
Saturday
October 26, 2013
,
12 noon
at
First Church of Christ, Unitarian
Click for Map and Directions
STERLING - Helen Derby (Gustafson) Fifield, 87, died on Thursday, October 17, 2013. Helen was born in 1926 in Worcester, the youngest child of Harry and Ruby (Derby) Gustafson. She graduated from North High School in 1944 and earned her bachelor’s degree in 1948 from Mount Holyoke College, where she developed lifelong friendships. During her freshman year following a train trip back to Worcester, Helen met the love of her life, George C. Fifield, on the steps of Union Station. Their love affair and happy life together lasted nearly seven decades.
Helen spent the first twenty years of her marriage as an Army wife, raising four children and following George around the globe to many military postings including Japan and Germany. Upon retirement from military life, Helen and George settled in Holden where they became involved in the greater Worcester community.
Helen was as an active and committed volunteer, serving on many local boards: Age Center; Goddard/Homestead; International Center of Worcester; Memorial Foundation for the Blind; RSVP; Sterling Women’s Club; and the East Lake Waushacum Association in Sterling. She was also a member of the Worcester Art Museum, the Museum of Russian Icons, and the Museum of Fine Arts. In addition, Helen worked as the State Advocate for the Office for Children, and then served as the Worcester County Advocate for the Massachusetts Association for Mental Health. In her later years, she enjoyed selling real estate for several local firms.
She and George moved in 1979 to their beloved cottage on the shores of Lake Waushacum in Sterling, spending thirty years pursuing her other long-term interests: knitting for her extended family and disabled veterans; playing the piano at family events; teaching her children and grandchildren to swim, waterski and canoe; hosting the annual family reunion; indulging her fascination with birds; and perfecting her special chocolate sauce.
She will be sorely missed by her husband, her nine grandchildren and her four children: George Jr. and his wife Suvanna of California; Peter Fifield and his wife Liberta of Spencer; Nancy Jeppson and her husband Eric of Worcester; and Janet Fifield of Kingston. She was predeceased by her brother, Harry Gustafson Jr. and her sister, Esther Torberg.
Relatives and friends are invited to celebrate her life by attending a calling hour from 10 - 11am on Saturday, October 26th at the Miles-Sterling Funeral Home and Tribute Center, 100 Worcester Road, Sterling, followed by a funeral service at noon at the First Church of Christ, Unitarian, 725 Main Street, Lancaster. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to a charity of one’s choice. To share a memory or to offer an online condolence, please sign the guestbook on this page.
A Calling Hour
Saturday
October 26, 2013
,
10 a.m.
- 11 a.m.
at
Miles-Sterling Funeral Home and Tribute Center
Click for Map and Directions
Funeral Service
Saturday
October 26, 2013
,
12 noon
at
First Church of Christ, Unitarian
Click for Map and Directions
To order memorial trees or send flowers to the family in memory of Helen (Gustafson) Fifield, please visit our flower store.
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