Andover - Lorraine (Hamel) Auchterlonie died at home Thursday, January 3, following a long illness. She was 91. She was the wife of the late Norman H. Auchterlonie, with whom she shared 58 years of marriage.
Born in Lawrence, she was the sixth of ten children of Peter C. and Helene (Charest) Hamel. She grew up in a French Canadian neighborhood in South Lawrence, attended Sacred Heart schools, and learned to speak English outside the home. Before her marriage she worked at the Ayer Mill in Lawrence.
She met her future husband through her sister, Irene, who was dating his brother, Tom. The two sisters married the two brothers, and after the war they all settled in Andover, eventually in the same close-knit neighborhood on Red Spring Road. She raised three children with her husband, while working first as a school lunch lady and later at Western Electric in North Andover. They moved to Salem, Mass., for several years in the 1990's. After her husband's death in 2001, she returned to Andover to live at Marland Place.
Growing up during the Depression, Lorraine developed a passion for the movies that she would keep all her life. She filled her home with music, from show tunes and movie themes to popular favorites and Country Western hits. She was a legendary shopper who found great joy in the Christmas season, her favorite time of year. She was also a devoted and enthusiastic grandmother, who enjoyed nothing more than having the kids for sleepovers and Sunday dinners, and taking them on trips to Niagara Falls, Salisbury Beach, Canobie Lake and the malls.
She is survived by three children, Barbara Crowley of East Bridgewater, Norman Auchterlonie, Jr. of Clay, N.Y., and his wife, Julie, and Helen Gifford of Salem, Mass., and her husband, Tom; six grandchildren, Robert and David Smith, Jennifer Auchterlonie, and Sally, Amy and James Gifford; and three great-grandchildren, Catherine and Liam Smith and Mary Gifford Bartlett. She also leaves a sister, Theresa LaPlante of Salem, N.H., and many nieces and nephews.
ARRANGEMENTS: Her funeral service was celebrated in the Burke-Magliozzi Funeral Home, 390 North Main Street, Andover, Tuesday, January 8, 2013, at 10 a.m. Many relatives and friends respectfully attended. Calling hours were held on Monday, January 7, from 4 to 8 p.m. Donations in Lorraine's memory may be made to the Jimmy Fund, C/O Dana-Farber Institute, P.O. Box 849168, Boston, MA 02284. For additional information, please visit, www.burkemagliozzi.com.