Worcester: Jean Marie (Gillis) MacLean, 85, passed away peacefully on February 15, 2022, at home surrounded by her loving family. She leaves her husband Murray MacLean; a son Darrell MacLean of Worcester; a daughter Lucinda Zettek and her husband Matthew of Hopkinton; a grandson Matthew Zettek; siblings- Helen, Joan, Norman, Malcom, and many nieces, nephews, and cousins. She was predeceased by a brother Howard.
Jean was born in Port Hood, Nova Scotia, Canada, daughter of the late John and Mary Gillis. Raised in a musical family in Cape Breton, she learned and loved to play the piano, sing in Gaelic and step dance. She graduated from MacFarlane High School in Upper Margaree and as a young woman, moved to Boston for employment with her twin sister Joan. Jean frequented concerts at the Canadian American Club where as a pianist she enjoyed accompanying violinists for lively Celtic dances. Jean loved her church; she was a devout Catholic who attended services several times a week and spent many hours volunteering at her parish. She also was a co-owner/operator of a family laundromat business M&M Laundries with her husband Murray. Jean was well known to the customers who came into their laundry; always quick to strike up a conversation, not because they were customers but because she was happy to see them. But of all the things Jean loved, she loved her family most. She will be missed and remembered as a kind and gentle person with a spirit for life.
All services will be private at a later date. To leave an online condolence message, please visit Nordgrenmemorialchapel.com. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Alzheimer's Association by copying below web address to tribute page and search for “Jean Marie MacLean”: https://www.alz.org/get-involved-now/other_ways_to_give/tributes