KEENER, BEVERLY A.

Beverly Anne Keener of Northford, and more recently, Newtown, Connecticut passed away peacefully on May 5, 2020 after a brief illness and will be greatly missed by all who knew and loved her.

Beverly was born on May 14, 1935 in New London, Connecticut, the daughter of Andrew Marsie and Cecelia Hubbert. After graduating from high school in New London, Beverly attended Willimantic State Teachers’ College, which later became Eastern Connecticut State University. Later earning her Masters’ and Sixth-Year degrees in Education, she became a teacher and educational administrator in Glastonbury, New Haven, and Madison Connecticut. Teaching was always her true vocation, and it was as a longtime kindergarten and second grade teacher that she retired in 2003 after over 45 years of dedicated service.

Beverly was also an avid gardener and had a deep and abiding love for Native American history, culture, and archaeology. She shared her Native American interests with her husband Roger of blessed memory (d. 2018), whom she married in 1963 and who was an amateur archaeologist when they met and married. Along with her love of gardening, Beverly appreciated the role that insects play in the ecosystem, and especially promoted education regarding, and preservation of, the monarch butterfly in her teaching and volunteer work. In more recent years, she often accompanied Roger at venues such as the Dudley Farm Market in Guilford, Connecticut, where she exhibited her handmade pottery and crafts. She continued her pottery-making at Newtown Rehabilitation and Health Care Center, where she had most recently resided, and shared her artistic creations with staff, residents, and visitors, even participating in periodic craft fairs alongside outside vendors. Beverly was predeceased by two brothers and a sister, and is survived by three sons, four grandchildren, and two beloved nieces. A funeral service for immediate family was celebrated at St. Mary’s Church in Bethel, Connecticut on Saturday, May 23 followed by a committal at St. Mary’s Cemetery. A memorial Mass open to family and friends will be celebrated at a later date.