Shirley Boudreau

Leah Boudreau (From left) Harry, Shirley, Alan, Phyllis and Lillian Andler, 1950

Leah Boudreau Shirley, 1 year old

Joe Boudreau Shirley was always there with a sympathetic ear to lend to friends or family.

Leah Boudreau Mid 1970's

Leah Boudreau Shirley and Alan (brother), late 1970's.

Leah Boudreau Shirley and Mark, Nov. 1984

Leah Boudreau Shirley and Jesse

Leah Boudreau Shirley and Leah, 1987

Leah Boudreau Shirley and Leah chatting on the phone. The beginning of a daily ritual for mother and daughter. 1987.

Leah Boudreau 1988

Leah Boudreau Lexington, MA. 1989

Leah Boudreau Summer, 1995

Leah Boudreau Shirley and her nieces, Erica and Allie. Greenwich, CT. 1997

Leah Boudreau Sampling the finest facilities while roughing it in New Mexico, 1999

Leah Boudreau Shirley with friend and neighbor, Lily Baddour. Taos NM, 1999.

Leah Boudreau Jill Teitelman (friend), Shirley, Joe, and Harry Teitelman. Cape Cod, 1999

Lily Baddour Staying at a Navajo hogan.

Joe Boudreau

Joe Boudreau Leah, Mark, Shirley, and Joe. 2011

Andrew Anderson Joe and Shirley making lotion in Worcester (with Pearl)

Mark Boudreau Shirley’s Gardens at her Brewster cottage.

Andrew Anderson At the Brewster house, where Shirley made sure everyone was well fed and felt welcome.

Leah Boudreau

Lily Baddour Carter’s future grandparents.

Leah Boudreau (Posted on behalf of Carol Hulak-ward). It was the autumn of 1968 when Shirley and I met, introduced by a mutual friend as entering freshman at NYU. Shirl and her childhood friend Debbie along with myself and roommate Jacque were pretty much inseparable, hanging out in their oh so cool Bleecker St apartment, eating 65 cent lo mein dinners in Chinatown, hunkered down in front of Madison Square all night in hopes of scoring much coveted tickets for The Rolling Stones. Shirley, even in those days, already seemed so self possessed and comfortable in her own skin. Over the years our separate lives strained the ties of our friendship but though stretched, we somehow stayed in touch and in these last years always picked up the thread as if all the passing years were inconsequential interruptions. These are the things about Shirley that I’ll remember and continue to hold in my heart: That the smile on her face would end radiating from her eyes, The generosity of spirit that fed all her friendships, Her forthright manner that remarkably managed to balance total honesty with an overarching kindness. For me Shirley stands forever in her kitchen on Bleecker Street, in Harvard or on the Cape; comfy in her sweats, hair any which way. She’s pouring herself the day’s first cup of coffee, but seeing me she slides the full cup in my direction, pours herself another, smiles her gentle sunup smile. “Sit” she says and I do, feeling blessed to be her friend on this day and all the others that came before and are to follow. To close, it seems right to remember Shirl in the words of Simon and Garfunkel (who often provided the soundtrack to our days on Bleecker Street): “Sail on silver girl, sail on now, your time has come to shine all your dreams are on their way,” you were truly the friend who moved along side us through good days and bad; we’ll love you always.

Lily Baddour In Provence with our friend and pastel teacher Joelle Feldman.

Leah Boudreau A very special week in Provence. Shirley and her fellow pastels students, guided by their wonderful teacher Joelle, took to village and countryside to create en plein air works. Spouses tagged along, being treated to a memorable wine-tasting tour by Joelle's husband Bob. Photos by many, compiled by Bob. Run time 6:29.

Lily Baddour Off to Provence.

Lily Baddour Lunch at Hangar B, Chatham Airport.

Leah Boudreau Recent pastel sketch.

Leah Boudreau Shirley with good friends and fellow garden club members at a recent trip to Tower Hill Botanical Garden

Leah Boudreau Shirley's favorite drink, Campari. Her copy of Joy of Cooking, a favorite cookbook. Still life of a pear, a favorite subject.

Joe Boudreau My brother, sister and I have unique artistic talents; our mother was the root source of our creative motivations. She appreciated beauty and art, but never in a pretentious way. She had a passion for plants, and especially flowers; I think she cherished the peace they convey through their graceful simplicity. And in her own right, my mom was a creatively gifted woman, though she may never have fully realized this truth in herself. Late in her life, she took up interest in fine arts and developed drawing and pastel painting skills. With her natural sense of color and composition, she readily learned the craft and produced some very lovely paintings, many of which adorn the house as a constant reminder of her love. Her presence will be missed by many, but she'll stay in our hearts always.

Lily Baddour Shirley at the orchid show, Tower Hill Botanical Garden.

Leah Boudreau Shirley's granddog, Rose and grandson, Carter.

Leah Boudreau A hellebore bloom from Shirley's garden, April, 2020.

Leah Boudreau Tower Hill Botanical Garden; A favorite place that Shirley loved to visit with friends.

Leah Boudreau Whale watching, late 1990's.

Leah Boudreau Roughing it, early 1970's. Check out the bell-bottoms.

Leah Boudreau

Andrew Anderson The Brewster house. So many wonderful memories here. I will miss the delicious food Mrs. Boudreau always had prepared and the brutally honest but loving opinions and advice she gave. She was such a special person and I’m grateful to have known her.

Leah Boudreau A collection of posters for Bloom n Art, an annual event Shirley introduced and chaired with the Garden Club of Harvard and Harvard Public Schools. Video of 2020 event: https://bit.ly/35RMiXC

Leah Boudreau Summering at the Cape with friends Debbie and Carol.

Greg Portnoy Mom and I looked through a bunch of picture albums to find these photos which I then scanned in so that we could upload them to the site. The first 3 are from my Going Away Party in Summer 1999 before I studied abroad. The last photo is dated 1977 if memory serves.

Herb Roseman The Andler girls with a quasi-Andler girl

Leah Boudreau

Alice Litter Of Shirley’s many talents was her extraordinary gift for friendship. She was a an unusually caring and generous friend to me and our family in both happy and difficult times. Twenty five years ago she catered my mother’s 70 th birthday party, which made it a resounding success. And more recently she extended herself when we had a family emergency; her calm and sensitive presence made all the difference. I will hold her in my heart as a guide toward being the kind of friend she was to me.

Herb Roseman Shirley and Herb singing Phyllis' birthday song

Leah Boudreau

Laurie Demmer Shirley and Leah in Harvard, MA

Leah Boudreau Eleanor, Shirley, Erica, Allie

Leah Boudreau Phyllis & Shirley

Leah Boudreau Shirley and mother, Lillian

Lisa Daigle An excerpt from a John O'Donohue blessing: Blessed be the mind that dreamed the day The blueprint of your life Would begin to glow on earth, Illuminating all the faces and voices That would arrive to invite Your soul to growth. Praised be your father and mother, Who loved you before you were, And trusted to call you here With no idea who you would be. From Lisa: Shirley, you will be missed and always remembered.