Shrewsbury – Lorraine M. Covino, 83, of Shrewsbury, died peacefully Saturday, Nov. 2, 2013 in Shrewsbury Nursing and Rehabilitation Center.
Born in Methuen, she was the daughter of Herbert and Rita Aurelia (Lafrenier) Gallagher. She attended St. Rita's School and St. Mary's High School in Lawrence. During high school, she met her future husband, Benjamin G. Covino, and they married at St. Mary's Church in Lawrence in 1953.
Lorraine taught at St. Rita's School in Lawrence in the years following World War II when a number of the Sisters of Notre Dame left to start a mission in post-war Japan. She also worked at the Lawrence Gas Company.
Lorraine and Ben lived in Alaska from 1955 to 1957 while Ben was stationed at Ladd Air Force base in Fairbanks. Their first son, Paul, was born after they returned to Massachusetts, and their second son, Brian, was born while they were living in Buffalo, New York, where Ben was attending medical school.
After moving to Shrewsbury, Lorraine became actively involved at St. Mary's Parish, serving in the Women's Guild and for many years as the coordinator for the Confirmation program. She also was a member of the Parent's Association at St. John's High School and was involved in Family Life ministry in the Diocese of Worcester.
During the years when Ben was the Chairman of the Department of Anesthesia at the newly formed Brigham and Women's Hospital in Boston, Lorraine planned annual holiday parties and other events for the staff of the department that had been created from the merger of three hospitals. She had a well-deserved reputation in her family and among her friends for gracious and generous hospitality. Following the death of her husband in 1991, Lorraine volunteered at Audio Journal and at the St. Paul's Cathedral Outreach Program, both in Worcester.
Lorraine is survived by her son, Paul and daughter-in-law Anne of Upton; her son, Brian of Knoxville, Tennessee; her grandchildren, Matthew of Upton, Peter and his wife Sarah of Cincinnati, Ohio, Justin of Sonora, California, Benjamin of Spokane, Washington, Nicholas of Oxford, Ohio, and Katherine of Knoxville, Tennessee; her niece Diane Heilig, husband Ken and children Ethan and Grace of North Kingstown, Rhode Island; her niece, Judith Barry and children Conor and Jack of Jamestown, Rhode Island; and her brother-in-law, Bernard Raeke of North Kingstown, Rhode Island. Her sister, Margaret Raeke, died in 2009.
Family and friends will honor and remember Lorraine's life by gathering for calling hours Tuesday, Nov. 5, from 4 -7 p.m., at Heald & Chiampa Funeral Directors ~ The Sumner House, 5 Church Road, On the Common, Shrewsbury Center, concluding with a Vigil celebration of Evening Prayer at 7 p.m., and will meet again Wednesday, Nov. 6, at 9 a.m., before leaving in procession to Saint Mary's Church, 640 Main St., Shrewsbury, where her funeral Mass will be celebrated at 10 a.m. Entombment, alongside her husband, will be held privately in the family mausoleum at St. Mary – Immaculate Conception Mausoleum.
In lieu of flowers, please honor Lorraine's memory with a contribution to St. Mary's Parish, Capital Campaign, 20 Summer St., Shrewsbury, MA 01545.
