Harriet Eleanor Sears Fraser died on Feb. 25, 2019 after a prolonged struggle with Lewy Body Dementia. Harriet was born on May 25, 1933, in Newton, Mass.
She was radiant woman with a beautiful smile that would brighten any place she entered. She leaves behind scores of friends, many of whom she knew throughout her entire life. As a child, Harriet spent many cherished summers at a camp (where her parents were teachers) along the shores of Lake Winnipesaukee, N.H. Harriet especially loved the White Mountains near Jefferson, N.H. and the crashing waves of Pemaquid Point. Harriet could often be found taking long walks and deep breaths in all of her beloved spots in nature.
Harriet attended Newton North High School and then went on to Colby College; from there, she graduated with a BA in English in 1955. She loved her time at Colby and the many friends she made there and kept throughout her life.
Sometime after college, Harriet attended a specialized certificate program (at Massachusetts General Hospital) learning cutting edge teaching strategies for intervention with children who struggled with dyslexia. After having her three children, Jon Fraser, Laura Fraser (son-in-law Andy Young and granddaughters Molly and Stella) and Sarah Fraser (beloved grandson Morgan), Harriet went back to school and got her Masters in Education at Lesley College. Throughout her long career, Harriet loved working with children who had LDs and delighted in all of her many students. She made many dear friends while teaching at Brookline High School; those friends remained close in her life and heart well after she retired from teaching.
In retirement, Harriet moved to Falmouth. Harriet volunteered as an ESL teacher, using her extensive skills tutoring many recently arrived immigrants. She became passionately and lovingly involved in understanding each of her student’s traumas in their difficult journey to the U.S.
She was a lover of classical music; an avid consumer of print media/television particularly regarding current events (especially politics) and was an ardent reader of fiction. Another of Harriet’s most favorite things to do was to have thoughtful, scintillating, lively (with good doses of humor) and heartfelt conversations about everything, especially as it pertained to the lives of the many people she loved.
Besides her three children, Harriet is survived by her beloved nieces and nephews and children/grandchildren of her late brother Benjamin Sears. They are Ben Jr. (Brad), Jennifer (Bill and children William and Jarrod), Becca (Charlie and children Esther and Thomas) and Nathan.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in her name to the Lewy Body Dementia Association https://www.lbda.org/donate.
Please join us at 1 p.m. for a celebration of her life on Sunday, May 26, 2019 at the Yarmouth Historical Society, 118 East Elm St., Yarmouth. If you would like to share a story about Harriet with the group, there will be an opportunity to do so.
