Rita A (Foster) Wood

Portland- Rita Ann (Foster) Wood, 79, formerly of Simsbury, CT, passed away on Wednesday, December 14, 2011 at the Gosnell Memorial Hospice House in Scarborough surrounded by her loving family. She fought a long and courageous battle with cancer for 18 years. Rita chose to engage in drug studies at Dana Farber in hopes of helping to find a cure for future cancer patients.

She was born on August 9, 1932 in Indianapolis, IN. Rita attended high schools in Mount Carmel, IL and St. Mary’s of Redford High School, Detroit, MI, graduating in 1950. Nine days after her 18th birthday, Rita married the love of her life, Arthur J. Wood on August 19, 1950. Her devotion to her husband began early. Already engaged at the time of her enrollment at St. Mary’s of Redford, Rita won a battle of wills with the school staff, insisting she be allowed to wear her engagement ring in class.

The center of her life was her family and she was a devoted wife and mother of six, grandmother of eight, and a great-grandmother of two. She loved doing crossword puzzles, watching the soaps, the color green, collecting sea shells, sea glass and old bottles, and cooking any vegetable her dear husband would grow in his garden. As a self-directed, life-long learner, she attended the theatre, book clubs, art classes, and swim exercise groups.

She had a great talent, which was used extensively by her family, for scouting craft fairs and garage sales and finding the perfect gift. She was always reading interesting books and she left a legacy of her own personal readings of children’s books on tape for her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. Faith was an important part of her life and as a devout Catholic, she was an active member of St. Mary’s in Simsbury, CT and a new member of St. Anthony’s in Westbrook after her move to Maine.

Rita is predeceased by her son, Arthur Jeffrey Wood and son-in-law Ralph McLellan.

Rita is survived by her husband of sixty-one years, Arthur Wood, and children, Cindy McLellan, Karen Knights, David and daughter-in law Cynthia Wood, Martha and son-in-law Steve Sjogren, and Amy Wood, and her brother Alan Foster.

In lieu of flowers, donations in her memory may be made to Hospice of Southern Maine, 180 U.S. Rt. 1, #1, Scarborough, ME 04074, or Dana Farber Cancer Institute’s Center for Sarcoma and Bone Oncology, 44 Binney Street, Dana 1212, Boston, MA 02115-6084.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a time of visitation Friday, December 16, 2011 from 7-9 pm at Jones, Rich & Hutchins Funeral Home 199 Woodford St. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrate don Saturday, December 17, 2011 at 12:30 pm at Saint Hyacinth Church 268 Brown St., Westbrook, ME. Interment will be Tuesday, December 20, 2011 at 1pm in Evergreen Cemetery.

Eulogy for Rita Wood – written by her family

(Read by Granddaughter, Sarah Knights)

My Grandmother was a woman of beauty and a woman of grace. She lived God’s Word quietly and fully each day. Each simple and quiet action had a huge impact on those around her, especially those of us lucky enough to be her family. We saw Love revealed, Love lived and Love freely given.

My Grandmother had an eighteen year battle against sarcoma, the cancer that took her life. Certainly, she was courageous, facing the uncertainty and quality of life challenges the cancer causes. Her fight was an inspiration to her family, and supported by her husband, her desire to work with the doctors and researchers at the Dana Farber Cancer Center in Boston. Grammy knew that the trials she participated in at Dana had only a slight chance of helping her. For the greater good of all those who may develop cancer, Grammy demonstrated a commitment in helping to find tools to fight, willingly taking treatments and meticulously note-taking to do the day-by-day-by-day work of science in the battle. We witnessed, as she lived through this dreadful period of her life, her belief in God’s care, both in this life and the next. This belief never wavered during the many times of healing, the times of decline, the times of hope, the times of despair, the times of renewed energy and the final recognition that her death was near.

Grammy was generous with her money, talents, and time. She was a cheerleader for everyone’s dreams and ambitions and she shared her resources with the church and the family. Whenever family members or friends encountered life’s difficulties, Grammy willingly stepped forward, driving and flying around the country, offering moral support or helping nurse us back to health. After her mother’s stroke, Grandma Foster came to live with mom and dad at their home in Connecticut. She always kept thoughts of her family and friends in mind as she was reading or shopping. Clippings were cut from newspapers with recipes or pertinent information intended for a particular party and many a time these were scanned or mailed to those who needed to know those things. The needs of others were always foremost in her mind, from this simple sharing of information to always asking, “Did you eat?” when we walked in the door.

A funny quirk Grammy had was that she loved to fold baby clothes. When a baby was in the house and the dryer was done everyone had better stand back and let her fold the clothes! Bringing children into the world was one of Grammy’s greatest joys and that joy expanded with each generation. After having six children of her own she was thrilled and excited to share in the birth of her grandchildren and great-grandchildren. One of her proudest moments was being able to actually witness the birth of her granddaughter Emily.

Grammy loved her brother, Alan. As he shared earlier this week, they had the typical sibling strife and struggles but they got along. Their lives took different paths: Rita’s to building a family with Arthur and Alan’s to a professional life in Washington DC and Denver. Rita and Alan may have been separated by distance but they enjoyed talking on the phone, sharing their current lives and turning over stories of the old days.

Grammy was a great listener and had an open mind and an open heart. Bargain shopping at Good Will one day, she saw a big, gray teddy bear, its bow torn half off and its feet coming apart. It could have been passed by or repaired easily but she took him home as is, saying she loved all his imperfections. This story pretty much described who she was. She accepted each of us just the way we are, with our strengths and with our flaws. She would offer advice and never judge. Unfortunately, we six children gave her many opportunities to practice that skill! It was God’s love, that she lived so fully, which allowed her to be so supportive and non-judgmental.

(Read by Son, David Wood)

Selflessness defined my Mom. This quality of sharing showed itself in quiet ways such as in waiting to take the last piece of chicken on the platter or selecting the smallest piece of cake. Mom would take the last shower on Saturday nights and, only after making sure all of our clothes and all of our many little shoes were polished and lined up ready for church the next morning.

Mom grew up near the tail end of the Great Depression and learned valuable lessons that she passed on to her husband and six children through the special and unique qualities she developed. Humility and frugality were two of these. Together, Rita and Arthur created a rich experience for the family, sometimes spearheading family adventures other families might consider odd. One adventure occurred on Fourth of July. Always budget-minded, they roasted a turkey at home, and hauled it up to the top of Bradbury Mountain. Once there, Mom and Dad amazed the other hikers by formally carving that turkey on top of the picnic table.

Mom felt bad that her education stopped with high school. Although we tried to impress upon her that formal education is not the only way to demonstrate knowledge, but we may have failed to get her to agree with us. She took many classes and played many games. She was, by far, the family’s best crossword puzzle solver. She attended the theater and had a great appreciation of art and beauty in the world. Being adept at conversation and having an extensive knowledge of current events made her a stimulating person to spend time with.

Rita and Arthur’s son, Arthur Jeffery was killed in 1972. This senseless loss defied understanding then and now. Rita and Arthur were able to hold the rest of the family together through sheer force of will and fortitude. Rita’s faith in God held her steady. During those difficult years after Jeff’s death, Mom often took her children to Two Lights and Fort Williams. The power of God’s awesome ocean offered some solace and sending the kids out to scout for sea glass gave them not only something to do but made them feel like they were helping to ease her pain.

The center of my Mom’s life was her family. Mom fully honored her wedding vow to nurture any children God might see fit to bless her with, and she was abundantly blessed! Rita loved all her family, and would light up when everyone was around but it was the love she had for Arthur and his love for her that was the foundation of it all. She met Arthur when she was fifteen years old. Their nearly 62 year marriage brought joy to them both. It is hard to imagine Arthur facing life without Rita. He’ll have the love of all the rest of us, but it will never be able to compare to the lifelong partnership he’s had with Rita. Through God’s grace, they have built a legacy that lives on.