Margaret Anne Beaudry died on Nov. 15, 2024 at her home in Eastham surrounded by family and friends and by prayers from those who could not be by her side. The cause of death was kidney failure and sepsis. She was 74.
The daughter of Robert and Marian Cole, Margo was born on Jan. 12, 1950 in Framingham, where she grew up. She came of age in the 1960s, during the years of the Boston busing controversy; she was proud of being in a multiracial group of friends at Framingham South High School and singing with a group called Smokey Cole and the Soul Sisters. She also played field hockey.
Margo graduated in 1968, the same year her father bought a house near Campground Beach in Eastham. The family summered there each year and became attached to the town.
Margo trained as a nurse at Framingham Union Nursing School and Boston University, and in 1970 she began her career at Boston City Hospital. In the 1970s, Margot married and had two children, but the marriage was troubled, and in 1979, after her divorce, she relocated to Eastham to work in the cardiac care unit of Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis.
There she met her future husband, Joseph Beaudry, who was visiting a friend. The couple had two children, and in the early years of their marriage they went to the annual New Orleans Jazz Festival.
Margo worked at the hospital through the 1980s in addition to running the Truro Lobster House with her husband until it closed in 1985. She was also involved with the AIDS Support Group in Provincetown; her daughter Ali Kelley remembers going to many fundraisers at the time.
Margo prided herself on being very strong, said Ali. To keep fit in the late 1980s and in the ’90s, she was an aerobics instructor at Willy’s Gym.
Margo left Cape Cod Hospital and worked for the Visiting Nurse Association in addition to performing private nursing duties before she transitioned to VNA hospice work. “She was one of the good ones,” Ali said. “Hospice was her calling, and she helped many people in the community navigate the end of life.”
Although Margo was supposed to work just three days per week, she could never say no. Most weeks she worked every day, covering other nurses’ shifts and providing whatever care was needed, always with a smile. She could raise anyone’s spirits.
“My mom was always giggling; she was just silly,” said Ali. “If you had a funny hat, she’d wear it. She was only five feet tall and could fit into tiny places.” Those qualities made her an excellent grandmother who enjoyed caring for her grandbabies at least twice a week.
Margo loved musicals and was a member of Broadway in Boston, leaving behind five tickets for the 2024-25 season.
She retired on Oct. 1, 2024 and left for Italy on Oct. 2, sending glowing reports to her children and enjoying every minute of her trip. When she returned on Oct. 28, she went back to work, as energetic as ever, “a force,” as her friends said.
Two and a half weeks later, she woke up feeling sick, and her illness rapidly progressed. When she regained consciousness at Cape Cod Hospital, “she refused medical intervention,” Ali said. “She was a fierce woman and never wanted any help from anyone.”
Looking her daughter in the eye, Margo said, “Take me home.”
Margo is survived by daughter Jennifer and husband Jason Quinn of Orleans, son Mike Beaudry of Maine, and daughter Ali and husband Chris Kelley of Eastham; her brother, John, and wife Debbie Cole of New York; and her sister, Jane, and husband Pete Wyman of Maine. She also leaves five grandchildren: Kai, Ciara, Joey Sue, Dusty Joe, and June; and she will be missed by many nieces, nephews, and cousins.
She was predeceased by her husband, Joseph Beaudry, and her daughter Susan Beaudry.
A memorial service will take place at 2 p.m. on Friday, Dec. 13 at the Church of the Holy Spirit in Orleans followed by a party at the Elks Club in Eastham at 4 p.m. for family and friends.
Donations in Margo’s name may go to any charity, as Margo herself was a profligate giver.
