Martha Barend, 68, longtime resident of Waldoboro and more recently of Warren, died March 13 in Berkeley, Calif. Faced with two different and very aggressive cancers, Martha went to California in early December 2014 to be with her sisters and other close relatives as she pursued treatment.
As was Martha’s way, she quickly made new friends in California, while keeping close touch with her many friends in Maine and around the country. She was most appreciated for her loyalty to friends and family, wry humor, and a true sweetness. She was a person whom anyone would describe as “absolutely without malice.”
Born in New York City, on June 13, 1946, Martha grew up in Cleveland Hts., Ohio, and attended Laurel School in Shaker Hts., Ohio from nursery school through high school graduation in 1964. She earned a B.A. in art history from Lake Forest College in Illinois, a degree that helped lead her to jobs with a New York art book publisher and the Cleveland Museum of Art.
In 1974, Martha accomplished a longtime dream: she moved to midcoast Maine and started a fabric store. The store, Alewives Fabrics in Damariscotta Mills, was a quick success and remains so. After selling the store in 1978, Martha moved on to other jobs over the years, including working for the Darling Marine Center, Windward Mark Yacht Charters, and Pik Qwik store.
She and Ron Barend, whom she married in 1980, built a house in Waldoboro, where two successive Brittany spaniels made them a family threesome for many years. Martha loved and frequented Maine’s parklands, beaches, and art museums. Among her other favorite pasttimes were playing mahjong and scrabble with groups of local friends, traveling, and joining classmates at reunions.
Martha was the oldest daughter of Neil Beall, MD, of Branford, Conn., and Patricia Beall of Cleveland Hts., Ohio, both deceased. She was predeceased by her husband, Ronald Barend in 2013.
She is survived by sisters, Trish Beall and Alice Beall and husband Robert Hockenos; and cherished nieces, Isis Hockenos and Elizabeth Sprancis.
The family is planning a memorial celebration near Pemaquid with Martha’s Maine friends and east coast cousins to be held in late spring.
Donations in her name may be made to the Georges River Land Trust, Medomak Valley Land Trust, Maine Public Radio or Maine Public Television.
