Susan Mary Bradbury

Susan Mary Walsh Bradbury of Braintree (formerly of Randolph) passed away March 14, 2025 peacefully surrounded by her family and with the support of the caring staff at Alliance Nursing Home. She was the beloved wife of her predeceased husband Robert Churchill Bradbury, with whom she shared 35 years of marriage. She was the loving mother of her late daughter Sarah Maloney, daughter Alice Bradbury Chisholm and her husband Jamie Chisholm of Scituate and their two children Matthew Robert Chisholm and Emma Grace Chisholm, and her son Matthew Bradbury of Weymouth and his two children Rhiannon Walsh and Tristin Bradbury. Susan was predeceased by her loving brother Richard (Dickie) Walsh and her sister Alice Haley Kelley. She was the beloved Aunt of Paula Haley and Beth Haley of Alaska.

Susan graduated from Thayer Academy (class of 54) and was a proud graduate of Boston College (class of 58). Susan began her career as a teacher in North Adams and worked in Braintree Highlands before beginning her over 30 year teaching career at the Thayer Middle School where she taught grades one through six. She enjoyed many joyous years of teaching children and loved to talk about those years and the extracurricular activities she did with Thayer including drama club, chorus, and ski trips! She also taught summer school and tried to make it a bit more tolerable for those kids that needed it! She had a great fondness for the “trouble makers.”

Susan was a great lover of the natural world and she loved ALL animals great and small but had a particular soft spot for her late German Shepherd, Socks. She also loved nature shows and donated every year to the ASPCA without fail. She instilled that love onto her children and grandchildren. She even gladly embraced her house being filled with animals that were brought home by her kids, including a sick pigeon and a mouse her daughter found and attempted to nurse back to health.

Susan was creative and loved the change of the seasons. She would make a new wreath for every season with ease and enjoyed decorating her home to celebrate the change. She particularly relished the Christmas season. She often said “I could never live anywhere other than New England; and except for one great Alaskan adventure to visit her nieces, she spent most of her weekends in New Hampshire antique hunting with her late husband “Bob”. She enjoyed finding old tools especially that had been abandoned and rusted and bringing them back to life to display on the walls of her home. She refinished 3 spinning wheels, thirty or more hurricane lamps and furniture. She sewed dresses and learned the old skill of braiding wool rugs. Susan also loved the garden and flowers. Come spring she would say she couldn’t wait to get her hands in the soil and feel the hot sun on her back.

Susan’s greatest love of all however was her family including her niece’s but especially her grandchildren. She often sat with them, teacher mode on and helped them with their homework at the kitchen table. These times always included snacks and many laughs! She had a great sense of humor that often included making fun of herself. Another great skill she has passed on to her descendants. She loved to laugh and could laugh hard. That sense of humor remained with her till her final days.

A graveside service will be held at Plain Street Cemetery in Braintree on Wednesday, April 2, 2025 at 11 AM.