Lucy Townsend passed away peacefully at home in Wellesley, MA on December 23 rd , 2023 at the age of 95. She was a loving mother, grandmother, friend, teacher, and community member. Born in Bronxville, NY on October 20th, 1928, Lucy was the second daughter of Elizabeth “Libby” Bradley Taylor and Charles Wellington Elmer. After the early death of her father, Lucy’s mother married Paul Butterworth who became Lucy’s much beloved second father.
Lucy is predeceased by five siblings and three husbands, John Hart Balise, Philip Alden Sidell and George Prior Townsend, Jr. She was mother to four children and eight stepchildren: Judy Balise Westerlund (Berndt), David Balise Sidell, Ann Balise Sidell, deceased (Ken), Jennifer Sidell Ellis (Bob), Caroline Sidell Nijenberg, deceased (Wim), Richard Sidell (Charlotte, deceased), Mark Sidell, deceased, Roger Townsend (Jette), Margot Townsend Johns (Ed), Gary Townsend (Holly), Lisa Townsend Bridge (Flint) and Mark Townsend (Maureen). She loved her huge family of twenty grandchildren and even more great grandchildren, nieces, nephews, cousins and friends.
Raised in West Hartford, CT, Lucy attended the Chaffee School in Windsor, CT. She graduated with a BA from Smith College in Northampton, MA and earned her MA from Trinity College in Hartford, CT. She worked as an elementary school teacher at The Chapin School in New York City and, later in her career, she was the Director of Development and Public Relations at Connecticut Community Care. She lived in Connecticut until her early nineties when she moved to Wellesley, MA after the death of her husband, George Townsend.
Volunteer community service was always important to her, as were her Quaker beliefs. She volunteered with The West Hartford Seniors Job Bank, Meals-on-Wheels, Connecticut Community Care, The Watkinson Prisoners Aid Society, and others. She was a member of the Hartford Monthly Meeting of Friends and, more recently, an attender of the Wellesley Meeting of Friends.
Lucy grew up and spent her entire life visiting Squam Lake in New Hampshire where she enjoyed hiking, canoeing, and spending time with family. Her time at Squam also inspired a commitment to conservation and a love for nature. When she was not exploring the outdoors, she was an avid reader of both history and current events. She was always reading the news and engaging in thoughtfulconversations about politics.
A memorial service after the manner of Friends will be scheduled for July 2024. Afterwards, her ashes will be buried at Cedar Hill Cemetery in Hartford, CT. Memorial gifts, if desired, may be made to Connecticut Community Care, Inc., (Enterprise Road, Bristol, CT 06010), the Hartford Monthly Meeting of Friends (144 Quaker Lane, West Hartford, CT 06010), the Wellesley Friends Meeting (26 Benvenue St., Wellesley, MA 02482), the Lakes Region Conservation Trust (P.O. Box 696 Holderness, NH 03245), the Friends Committee on National Legislation (245 2 nd Street NE, Washington, DC 20002), or to a charity of one’s choosing.