Princeton – Claudia J. (Carter) Durand, formerly of Shrewsbury, died in her home Tuesday, March 13, 2012, surrounded in the tender care of those whom she loved. She was 52.
Born Feb. 9, 1960 in Worcester, a daughter of Marcelle I. (Dumas) Carter and the late Joseph A. Carter, she was raised and educated in Shrewsbury. She was a graduate of Shrewsbury High School, class of 1978, and later earned a degree from the former Salter Secretarial School.
Her early professional career included executive administrative assistant at Digital Equipment Corp. and Honeywell Corporation in Northborough. She put her career on hold to raise her two beautiful daughters. Her return to work included Getchell Companies in Stow for many years before assuming a position as commercial account manager for W.T. Phelan Insurance in Arlington.
Claudia loved living in Princeton. A resident since 1992, Princeton afforded her all the things she loved in life. She enjoyed gardening and looked forward to the annual blossoming of her hydrangea bushes. She skied at nearby Wachusett Mountain and in the off-season hiked the trails with family and friends and her much loved “Madaket.”
She also loved horseback riding and was active in the community. A member of the Pine Hill Club, the Princeton Tennis Club, and the Winter Carnival Committee, she had also served on the cemetery commission. Mother's Day was an annual pilgrimage with her two daughters to Fenway Park, where they’d take in a game and be able to literally run the field. Her yearly vacations to Bailey Island in Casco Bay, Maine, are times where memories were made and are now treasured.
Her love and her legacy live on in her two daughters, Lauren E. Durand and her love, Michael C. LaRoche, of Leominster and Katlyn E. Durand of Amherst; her granddaughter, Brooklyn N. Hamblin; her mother, Marcelle I. Carter of Shrewsbury; Claudia's love, Todd M. Stolberg of Princeton; her siblings, Joseph A. Carter of Rutland, James R. Carter and his wife, Elizabeth, and Karen P. Lenehan and her husband, Edward, all of Shrewsbury; her former husband, Paul M. Durand of Hudson; and many aunts, uncles, cousins, nieces and nephews.
Family and friends will honor and remember Claudia's life by gathering for calling hours Friday, March 16, from 4 to 8 p.m., at Heald & Chiampa Funeral Directors ~ The Sumner House, 5 Church Road, On the Common, Shrewsbury Center, and again Saturday, March 17, at 8:30 a.m., before leaving in procession to Saint Mary's Church, 114 Princeton St., Jefferson, where her funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Burial will follow in North Cemetery in Princeton.
Honor Claudia's fight against skin cancer with a contribution to the Dana- Farber Cancer Institute, attn: Sarah Church, 10 Brookline Place West, 6th Floor, Brookline, MA 02445-7226, memo reference Dr. Lorch- In Memory of Claudia Durand.
