- Eileen Estelle (Dunn) McQuiston died Thursday January 31, 2019, in Amherst three weeks after her 96th birthday, surrounded by her loving children and in God's embrace. She was born January 10, 1923, in Queens, New York, the oldest child of Estelle (Costello) and John Dunn. She loved and never stopped loving New York City. The beautiful Black Irish brunette from Ozone Park spent her high school days taking two trains to Brooklyn to attend the all-girls Catholic school there.
Her yearbook said this about her: "She knew it not, but she was fair / And like the midnight was her hair / That falls where moonlight ripples are."
Eileen aspired to go to college. But her mother died very young, so Eileen went to work at the bank and helped raise her three brothers and three sisters. Eileen would spend the next 70 years taking care of her family. In the last few years her family was grateful to take care of her. And while Eileen would spend most of her life in Massachusetts and eventually root for the local teams, her New York sense of sophistication never left her--nor did a bit of her accent: Her whole life she pronounced Hugh as "you." But as an homage to her adopted state, she would pronounce parka as "pahker."
Eileen picked up that Boston accent because one day in 1945 a friend of a friend introduced her to a handsome, very tall, young Naval officer from Waltham named George Joseph McQuiston. George confided in their mutual friend after that first meeting, "That's the girl I'm going to marry."
And he did.
They raised six children, first in Waltham and then in Sudbury. Mum, as her children called her, packed lunches and attended school events for 25 years, eventually working part time at Filene's, where her expert taste in home design benefited many customers. She and George then enjoyed a well-earned retirement in Kennebunk, Maine. No one loved the ocean more than Eileen. Before retirement, you could find her during summers at Old Orchard Beach and once retired, at Mothers Beach in Kennebunk. She had the tan to prove it.
After George died in 2000, Eileen moved back to Massachusetts and lived in Marlborough and Amherst. To her last days she loved spending time with her children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren, enjoying dark chocolate and every ice cream, and spending summers in Maine. A long life well lived.
Wife of the late George J. McQuiston who died in 2000 she leaves her children, Gerald McQuiston of Natick; Ellen McQuiston (Mark Wallace) of Anson, Maine; John Gary McQuiston (Rita Loreti) of Boston; Susan McQuiston of Amherst; Timothy McQuiston (Marla) of Williston, Vermont and Diane McQuiston (John Trant) of Tewksbury. Additionally, she is survived by her grandchildren Caitlin Malloy (Andrea Sorgato) Ian Malloy (Yuanzi), Hunter Godeck, Edward McQuiston, Cristina McQuiston, Conor McQuiston, and Justin McQuiston; great granddaughters Isabel and Emily Sorgato, and her beloved and loving nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her brothers and sisters.
Family and friends will honor and remember Eileen's life by gathering for a calling hour in The Joyce Funeral Home, 245 Main Street (Rte. 20), Waltham on Monday, February 4th from 9 to 10 a.m. before leaving in procession to Saint Jude Church, 147 Main Street, Waltham where her Funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10:30 a.m. Burial in Hope Cemetery in Kennebunk, Maine will be held in the spring.
In lieu of flowers, memorials in her name may be made to Cooley-Dickinson VNA & Hospice, Development Office, P.O. Box 329, Northampton, MA 01061-0329 would be appreciated.
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1923 - 2019 (96 years)
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