Genevieve Mary Benedict

Brothers and sisters share your years as no one else does. They know more than anyone what your childhood and home life was like. Gen and I had a great childhood in Edgartown, starting with what happened after Pearl Harbor when she was less than a year old.
Our Dad, who could run boats of any size, was recruited by the OSS (precursor of the CIA) as a "Confidential Observer" one of twelve hundred designated by the US Navy during World War II to be trained on a new technology called "RADAR" to go out on the dangerous mission on specially equipped fishing vessels to search for and report sightings and locations of UBoats along the East Coast.
Our Dad did that for the duration of the war and his reported sightings likely saved the lives of many on troop ships that changed their planned paths due to the reported sightings of UBoats by our Dad and comrades on his boat.
He knew that baby Gen loved bananas and whenever he put into New Bedford he scoured the docks for anyone carrying bananas and bought or bartered for bananas for his beloved baby Genevieve.
Genevieve Mary (Danberg) Benedict who recently resided at Linden Ponds Independent and Assisted Living Facility in Hingham, MA passed away suddenly and unexpectedly on Tuesday, October 29th. The cause of death was a ruptured aortic aneurysm. As a retired Operating Room Registered Nurse, she realized what was happening and summoned help immediately.
She bantered with the vascular surgeon and OR nurses as she entered the OR for the minimally invasive four hour repair, all confident the repair would go fine. She said she had assisted on this very procedure many times and encouraged the team to get on with the procedure and that she would see them in four hours. Unfortunately, as soon as she went under anesthesia, she went into cardiac arrest, likely due to loss of blood, and although a team of twenty worked on her for over an hour, they could not bring her back.
Gen was by nature a kind and caring person. She was always looking for people who needed help and helping them in every way she could. From early childhood she always knew she wanted to be a nurse and became an RN. When she was in elementary school she got a nurses' kit for Christmas.
Around the house she wore the white uniform, the hat and carried her stethoscope around her neck. She was "The Nurse" and since I was her younger sister, I was "The Patient". I got fake shots, had my temperature taken dozens of times, got ice packs on my forehead, took fake medicines and if I wasn't handy, our cat and dog went scurrying because when they saw that nurse's outfit, they knew what was in for them!
Genevieve was born on January 25, 1941 to Victor Allen Danberg and Genevieve Catharine (Oscar) Danberg of Edgartown, MA. where she attended the Edgartown Schools, and graduated as salutatorian of the class of 1958. Her class of twenty two was the next to last to graduate from Edgartown High School. Her Dad, Victor A. Danberg was in the first class to graduate from the new Edgartown High School in the class of 1926.
Gen went on to receive her RN at St. Lukes Hospital School of Nursing in 1961 after which she had a very successful career in nursing in many New England hospitals.
Genevieve began her long, successful career in nursing in Boston hospitals; she could run any floor and was a sought after instructor for both nurses and medical students. She taught head and neck anatomy to Harvard Medical students at the New England Deaconess and spent many years as an Operating Room nurse in Boston, at the VA Hospital in West Haven, CT, Cardinal Cushing and Brockton Hospitals
and worked at the Martha's Vineyard Hospital when she and Harold lived in Edgartown after he retired.
After her mother had a stroke at age 86, Gen lovingly cared for her for six years in her home in Pembroke and brought her Mom to her home in Edgartown to connect with her old friends as often as she could.
Gen was predeceased by her husband, Harold Leander Benedict, who died in 2006 and by her parents, Victor A. Danberg in 1975 and Genevieve C. Danberg in 1994. Genevieve will be lovingly remembered by her sister Victoria L. Danberg and her husband, Dr. John P. Ficarelli of South Boston; nephews Dr. Andrew V. Danberg-Ficarelli of South Boston, Alexander J. Ficarelli-Danberg, his wife Morgen Schroeder, their daughter Aurora Lee of Edgartown; niece Meredith Danberg-Ficarelli and her husband Naji Boustani of Vineyard Haven; cousins Paul Schultz, Aileen (Schultz) Jackson, Joseph and Ann Baran of Ambridge, PA, Edward Baran of New Philadelphia, OH, Philip DeMailo of Locust Grove VA, Alfred DeMailo of Michigan, Edward DeMailo and his wife Denise of Beaver, PA, Sirkka Kulmala, daughter Leena Maija and her husband Jorma Karisto, son Cary, his wife Pia and daughter Mirka Kulmala of Helsinki Finland as well as numerous friends and other relatives.
Gen had many hobbies: She was a great lover of mystery novels beginning with the Nancy Drew Mystery series, all of which she read and re-read as a young girl. She moved on to Agatha Christie novels, all of which she read and re-read all sixty-six novels and fourteen short stories with delight, as well as Sherlock Holmes and many other classics of the genre. She loved to travel and walked and drove Europe with a group of nurses on annual pilgrimages to Octoberfest and other countries in Europe.
She bought her first car, a 1961 VW in Germany, drove it all over Europe with friends and luggage crammed in and shipped it home. She did the same with her adored orange Carmen Ghia.
Gen was also a crossword puzzle fiend from her teenage years. She subscribed to some newspapers just so she could do the crosswords and sometimes threw the paper out, saving only the crossword. We estimate that she completed at least fifty thousand crossword puzzles in her lifetime and passed her passion on to her younger sister Vicki who is likewise addicted to crosswords.
A lifelong lover and supporter of all animals, Gen and Harold adopted many hard to place animals in need of a home, especially black cats, who often went without adoptive homes due to prejudice and a fear of black cats. Her black "attack cat" PC (Pussy Cat) lived to be twenty and KC (Kitty Cat) was given six months to live due to his epilepsy. She did not take a vacation anywhere that she couldn't take the him as he needed two shots a day of Phenobarb or Dilantin. He lived to be over twenty.
Gen and Harold always had multiple rescue dogs and cats. Harold found white whiskered "Pal" shivering by the side of the road in a rainstorm and brought him home. When they found his family, (his original name was Mercedes), who said they did not want to take him back because they had told their children he had passed away, Harold said "No problem, we'll keep him", determined not to let this dog go back to such an owner.
He said to "Pal" "Hey Pal, do you want to stay here or come with me?" Pal followed Harold back to his truck. Under Gen and Harold's loving care, Pal recovered from heartworm infestation and lived happily for many years with Gen and Harold.
Gen later offered to take a sweet 11 year old dog whose owner went into a nursing facility. She did not want to move to Linden Ponds unless Prince could come with her. Prince came to Linden Ponds and lived to be 18 under Gen's loving care with the help of her wonderful friends at Linden Ponds who walked him when it became difficult for Gen to do so.
Gen was a great adventurer whether on windjammer cruises in the Gulf of Maine, driving treks across Europe or trips to visit sister Vicki in South America, Gen was always ready for the next international venture. She and her fellow nursing colleagues trekked far and wide. Her Dad taught her and sister Vicki to handle any boat and to water ski in Edgartown Harbor. Gen also soloed in a four seater Cessna 172 aircraft out of Marshfield airport.
A long time congregant of St. Andrews Church in Edgartown she was baptized, confirmed and married in that parish and served on the St. Andrews Altar Guild as did her mother, Genevieve Catharine (Oscar) Danberg for many decades. Her sister Vicki sang in the Junior Choir when Carrie Reynolds was organist and Choir Director.
Gen was a loyal friend and a great stepmom to all of Harold's children and grandchildren, whom she loved dearly. She made and treasured many friends at Linden Ponds. We all loved her and she will be greatly missed by all.