Rita Delia Dowd

1926 - 2015

PETERBOROUGH - Rita Delia Dowd, 89, a resident of Peterborough, and of Florida, South Burlington, and Bennington, Vt. prior to that, died peacefully at the Summerhill Assisted Living community while held in the love and care of her family.

Born in Easthampton, Mass. on Mar. 17, 1926, Rita was the daughter of the late Pamela G. Meyer, and sister of the late Dorothy Koestring. She graduated from Malden High School with the class of 1944 and worked as a hairdresser for many years. Rita sometimes boasted to her grandchildren that she did so in "spiked heels and bright-red lipstick."

Rita met her husband of 64 years, Paul E. Dowd when he returned from serving in the Navy in the Pacific theater. He liked to say that she "picked him up" since they first met at a roller rink where he (a novice skater) fell down on the floor and she offered him a helping hand. They wed on Apr. 30, 1950 and first lived in Woburn, Mass. where Rita ran a tight ship to keep her growing family well-fed and cared for, and where she also showed her soft side by once crocheting a handle to fix a fallen oriole's nest that her children found. She was a reserved, no-nonsense kind of woman whose soft heart was most visible in the company of children, cats and songbirds.

The Dowds moved to Bennington, Vt. in 1965 where Rita worked outside of the home over the years, but her greatest pride was in her family and home. She grew glorious flower gardens, helped make massive snowmen in the wintertime, baked special Christmas cookies with her children and grandchildren, and knit a seemingly endless array of gorgeous and cozy sweaters, mittens and hats. She made an art of doing the laundry and was known to hang clothes on the line year round. Rita recycled and composted long before it was a common, necessary way of life.

In 2013 Rita supported Paul's wish to spend his remaining time in Florida with family care and support. As a faithful companion she continued to read his favorite Robert Frost poetry into his last hours. After Paul's death, Rita moved to the Summerhill Assisted Living community in Peterborough. She enjoyed frequent visits and activities with family and also delighted in visiting her daughter's kindergarten classroom where the children knew her as Gigi. She read, played games and assisted the children with school projects; the DCS community brought her great joy. In a classroom book entitled, The Important thing about Gigi, one kindergarten friend wrote, "The important thing about Gigi is that she loves me. She is fun. She is smart and silly. Gigi is brave, she plays games with me and she knows all of the rules. She follows the ABC's at school. But the important thing about Gigi is that she loves me."

Rita's survivors include her seven children: Pamela Dowd Drolet (David) of Palm Coast, Fla.; Paula Dowd Coletti (Larry) of Palm Coast, Fla.; Ernest Paul Dowd (Katherine) of Brattleboro, Vt.; Linda Dowd Lambert of Amherst, Mass.; Ellen Dowd Sweet (Leigh) of South Burlington, Vt.; Celeste Dowd O'Malley of Brattleboro, Vt. and Susan Dowd Ellingwood (Mark) of Hancock. She leaves 12 grandchildren, 12 great-grandchildren (including her namesake Emilia Rita), and one great-great-grandchild. Rita also leaves several nieces, nephews, and friends. She was predeceased by her beloved granddaughter, Molly McNeil Dowd in 2014.

Visiting hours will be held on Thursday, Dec. 3 from 5:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. at Jellison Funeral Home, 25 Concord Street, Peterborough. A Memorial Mass will be celebrated on Friday, Dec. 4 at 11 a.m. at Saint Patrick Church, 89 Main Street, Jaffrey. Reverend Wilfred Deschamps, pastor, will be the Celebrant.

The Dowd family would like to offer very special thanks to the kind and caring staff of Summerhill Assisted Living. In lieu of flowers, gifts in Rita's honor may be given to The Dublin Consolidated PTO (playground fund) and mailed to DCS, 1177 Main Street, Dublin, N.H. 03444.

To view the obituary online, or to leave the family a condolence, please visit www.jellisonfuneralhome.com.