Eugenia Theresa “Jean” Gillis, of Manomet, MA, was born on November 2, 1930 and passed away quietly in her sleep, the morning of April 25, 2020.
She was born and raised in Medford, MA, daughter of the late John and Lucy Martin.
Jean graduated from Mt. Auburn Nursing School and found her passion as a Registered Nurse in the Labor and Delivery Ward. While Jeannie Martin was hidden behind scrubs and a face mask one day at the hospital, the young Paul Gillis saw her and was smitten. He called the ward and asked who the nurse with the big blue eyes was. She happened to answer the phone, and their fate was sealed. They married in 1956 and shared 54 years of marriage together, four children and eight grandchildren. She has missed him tremendously these past 10 years.
Jean loved to crochet, bake, sew and tend to her house, while watching the birds and the ocean from her windows. She was kind, and thoughtful and proud of the family she and Paul raised. Over the years, she’s crocheted hundreds of prayer robes for the sick and confined at St. Bonaventure’s Church, and that brought her joy.
She leaves behind her four children: Ken Gillis of Goffstown, NH; Carole Gillis of Woburn, MA and her four children, Erik, Linnea, Emily and Pelle; Alan Gillis of Mattapoisett, MA, his wife Susan and their daughters, Isabelle and Katherine; and Adele Gillis of Alameda, CA, and her two sons, Peter and Christopher.
She was predeceased by her parents, her sisters, Mary, Patricia, and Elizabeth, and her brother, James.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her name to the Fund for the Needy at St. Bonaventure’s Church, Manomet, MA. A memorial service will be scheduled when we are all able to gather together. For online guestbook, visit www.saundersdwyer.com.