Jean (Galanti) Vaz

Jean Vaz passed away after a short illness on October 4, 2022, at age 93. For 57 years she was the beloved wife of Frank Vaz, Jr., who predeceased her in 2011. 

Born in Mansfield, Massachusetts on January 12, 1929, Jean was the second of two daughters of Guerino Galanti, originally of Pesaro, Italy, and Jennie Rae (Carr) Galanti, who was born in Lansing, Michigan. Jean graduated from Mansfield High School in 1946 and went on to study at Fisher Junior College in Boston. After marrying in 1953, Jean and Frank settled in Mansfield where she was employed as an administrative assistant at Hercules Powder Company, Cavallo & Signoriello Insurance Agency, and Mansfield High School, where Jean was known as “The Office Elf” and loved by many classes of students in the 1970s and ‘80s. In 1986 Jean and Frank retired and moved to a home in Brewster, Massachusetts that Frank helped build and where Jean created a perennial garden highlighted by roses and herbs that thrive to this day. During the last seven years of her life, Jean lived at ReNew Worcester (formerly Highland House), where she enjoyed the company of new friends and neighbors.

Jean had a green thumb and an encyclopedic knowledge of plants and flowers. She loved to quote poetry and read—everything from the classics to crime dramas to past issues of The Vineyard Gazette her son Peter would send. She was a prolific quilter and crafter who created innumerable treasures for a wide circle of lucky recipients. She loved birds and kept feeders wherever she lived. She enjoyed cooking and passed this skill in abundance to her son Rick. Jean had a proud New England accent and followed all of the region’s sports teams. Having traveled to Europe as a young woman, she subsequently enjoyed following the world travels of her sons. Most of all, Jean was a loving mother and friend, always giving of herself, expecting little in return and never with a complaint. 

She is survived by her two sons and their wives: Rick Vaz and Chrys Demetry of Worcester, and Peter and Tina Vaz of Brooklyn, New York. She is also survived by her older sister, Gloria Dupree, of North Attleboro, as well as numerous nieces and nephews.

A memorial service will be planned for early 2023. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to the Brewster Ladies Library https://www.brewsterladieslibrary.org/donate/ and Planned Parenthood https://www.weareplannedparenthood.org/cOJVhOyrzkq4uBcxVekXFA2?affiliateID=090610