Bette Rea Allen

Born in Boston to the late Arthur Louis Rea II and Elonise Hendricks Rea on October 29, 1941, Bette and her younger brother Arthur "Bud" Louis Rea III were raised in Milford, NH by their single working mother following their father's early death. Confident, adventurous, self-reliant, and a strong student with practical intelligence, Bette attended Katharine Gibbs School and worked in New York City and Puerto Rico before returning to Greater Boston to marry and manage a business with her first husband, Michael Allen. At 31, she lost her mother to sudden illness. Following divorce, she embraced reinvention and was hired by Harvard economist Walter Frank in Cambridge, who described her as "crisp, cool and competent" and with whom she remained close friends until his 2019 death at age 95.

Walter introduced Bette to George V. Buehler of Brookline, heralding the beginning of her "Second Act" and a 40 year career managing Buehler Realty Trust. She bought her own Brookline condominium and lived happily alone before eventually moving to a Buehler building steps from her St. Paul office and joining Donald Crosscup in a joyous marriage rooted in respect and simple pleasures. Together, they were "like children in the backyard on swings," relishing the outdoors, the company of family and friends, love, laughter, and dedication to church and God.

Renowned for dressing to the nines, sashaying down Longwood Avenue, and fearlessly climbing ladders in high heels and skirts with blazers, Bette led with self-possession, dignity, grace and pizazz. She had natural business acumen, an eagle eye, and was a quick study, handling challenging personalities and circumstances with poise and aplomb and steadying the business through many a storm. Committed to offering below-market rent and attentive, respectful service with a personal touch, Bette spoke with a unique blend of diplomacy and candor and wrote with clarity and wit. Her office doors were always open, the chairs opposite her desk often occupied by visiting tenants, contractors, and neighborhood characters. So much more than a property manager, Bette oversaw wine collections, wine tastings, book collections, artwork, and complex business endeavors. She was a beloved advisor to residents and workers from all walks of life: a Brookline mainstay and neighborhood treasure.

Bette loved household animals and particularly, the aloofness of cats. She enjoyed sleeping with windows open, sweet cherry tomatoes from her husband's garden, and the click and whir of her signature printing calculator. She was particular in her tastes and standards and made no effort to mask disappointment. She embraced contradictions in herself and in others.

Known for giving distinguished, impeccably wrapped gifts, she leaned into holiday decorations and planted hostas, pansies and tulips with abandon. She collected seashells and tchotchkes; loved antiques, bold colors and maximalism; and cherished July trips with her husband to Boothbay and Bar Harbor, Maine.

A warrior in the face of decades of chronic illness, Bette retired to the North Shore for the final years of her life, embracing an identity that transcended her professional legacy.

She died on December 21, 2024, and is survived by her beloved husband Donald Crosscup of Peabody, MA and his children, grandchildren and great-grandchildren; her niece Tracy Rea Hackney (daughter of her late brother, "Bud" Louis Rea) of Rocky Mount, NC; and her dearest friends, Janette Negele and Mary Rose Rivers.

A Celebration of life will be held at 11 a.m. on Saturday, June 7, 2025 at Calvary Christian Church in Lynnfield, MA.

In lieu of flowers, please send contributions in Bette's honor to Tory Burch Foundation (https://www.toryburchfoundation.org/donate/) or MSPCA-Angell (https://support.mspca.org/site/Donation).