Mystic - Jean B. Pearson, 87, of Mystic, died on Christmas Day at Westerly Hospital of cancer. Born July 7, 1937, to William and Jean Brezinski, Jean grew up in Agawam, Mass., on Woodcliff Ave., adjacent to Riverside Park (now Six Flags New England,) where she and her friends had fun during the summer as park employees. The first in her family to graduate from college, she attended American International College (AIC) and later received her master's degree from Wesleyan University. A lifelong educator, Jean began her teaching career in the Suffield school system before making the life-changing decision to move to New London to take up a teaching job at Robert E. Fitch Sr. High School, where she met her husband, Arthur H. Pearson Jr. The couple lived on Potter Court in Noank before buying a house in Mystic. After the birth of her sons in 1969 and 1971, Jean took a break from teaching but then returned to the classroom as a summer school teacher, then a substitute, and finally as a History teacher at Ella T. Grasso Southeastern Regional Technical School, where she taught until her retirement in 1996. She took great pride that many of her students went on to become educators or to become business owners that contributed back to the community.
Jean was a lifelong and knowledgeable sports fan, with a particular interest in the New York Mets and loved the commentary by Keith Hernandez, Ron Darling, and Gary Carter on SNY. She enjoyed traveling with her husband, with her favorite destination being Stowe, Vermont, where she first began visiting (as a skier) in the 1960s. In her retirement, she selflessly cared for her mother, who moved in with her and resided with her until her death at 100. And, crucially, after her husband received a diagnosis of early-onset dementia, and the slow decline associated with it, she devoted herself to ensuring that he would live as full a life of travel, culture, and exercise as possible and provided him with dignity and life experience long after the illness would typically have permitted such. The two could frequently be seen on long walks together along River Road. They were both partial to New Balance sneakers and motored through dozens of pairs in their retirement. Arthur’s death, in 2005, coincided with the birth of Jean’s granddaughter, Isla. Jean could be seen all over Mystic wheeling Isla in her stroller and, later, spending time together at the park, Carson's, Sea Swirl, Mystic Drawbridge Ice Cream, and, especially, the Mystic Seaport.
In her retirement, through a combination of exercise, diet, and weekly meetings at the Westerly Weight Watchers (Wellness,) she lost approximately 65 pounds and became an inspiration for others seeking to do the same. To many locals, Jean would be known as “the walker,” taking, depending on the route, eight-to-ten-mile walks from her home on Beebe Cove, around River Road, and back up Route 27, where she would stop at Mystic Market for a deserved treat. Through these outings, she felt a deep connection to the change of seasons, bird and plant life, and the beauty of the Mystic River. She frequently attended lectures and events at Mystic Seaport, the Mystic and Noank Library, the Mystic River Historical Society, concerts in Mystic River Park and Esker Point, and Mystic Schooner games. She was, every December, an enthusiastic and unabashed fan of the Hallmark Channel.
Jean’s family wishes to thank the staff at McQuade’s Marketplace (and Pharmacy) Mystic, the Visiting Nurse Association, Hospice, Lawrence and Memorial Hospital, Westerly Hospital, Smilo Cancer Center, Northeast Medical Group (with particular gratitude to Dr. Robert Ciatola,) and to Jean’s many neighbors who looked out for her in her final months.
Jean is survived by her son Andrew and his wife Dawn Pearson of Mystic; a son Daniel Pearson of Mystic; a daughter-in-law, Alexa, and granddaughter Isla Pearson of Stonington; and her brother, William Brezinski and his family of Easthampton, Mass.
A funeral mass will be held at 10 a.m. Tuesday, Jan. 7 at Sacred Heart Church in Groton. Burial will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Sacred Heart School, 56 Sacred Heart Drive, Groton, CT 06340.