Northborough – Marilyn Louise Bergstrom, 91, passed away peacefully on Sunday, February 2, 2020 surrounded by her loving family at UMass Memorial Medical Center – University Campus in Worcester.
She is predeceased by her loving husband, Merrill, and survived by her son David Bergstrom (Cindi Callaghan) of Massachusetts; daughter Kristen Swift and her husband Robert of Massachusetts; four grandchildren Andrea Bergstrom (Michael Straize) of South Carolina; Amy Bergstrom (Matthew Di Domenico) and their children, Marilyn’s great-grandchildren, Matthew Luca and Abigail Lynne of Nevada; Robert T. Swift III and his wife Kailey of California; Erika Swift of Massachusetts, and Suzanne Bergstrom (mother of Andrea and Amy) of Nevada.
Born to David Emmanuel and Mary Francis (Thoms) Wivagg, Marilyn was raised in Worcester, MA. She grew up in Quinsigamond Village, meeting her husband and best friend through the Bethlehem Covenant Youth Group. They married in December of 1950 and cherished over 60 wonderful years of marriage, doing mostly everything together. They loved “going for a ride” on a daily basis, for coffee or just because, gardening, caring for the wild birds, and being outdoors. She loved cats, dogs and animals of all kinds, especially her furry grandchildren. Marilyn enjoyed sewing and could make anything from complete outfits to matching doll clothes when her daughter was young. She was a creative decorator and was always making things pretty.
Marilyn and Merrill moved to Northborough in 1955 and soon became long-time members of Trinity Church where they were active in several ministries, including one of their favorites, The Mistletoe Mart holiday fair. Marilyn was always involved in the church’s hospitality committees, and was known to be found in the kitchen. They transitioned to the Episcopal faith in 2001, joining Church of the Nativity. Here, she and her family enjoyed serving the congregation and the community through ministries such as the annual Novemberfest Fair, Worcester Fellowship, Simple Social luncheons, and any collation needs. She loved serving and all of the beautiful friendships she made in doing so.
Throughout her life she spanned several careers. She perfected her secretarial skills at Salter Secretarial School and became the Secretary to the President of Wyman-Gordon. Her interest in baking led her to Assabet Valley Night School to learn cake decorating where she went on to decorate wedding cakes for quite some time. In her later years, she very much enjoyed her time working as a sales associate for local furniture store, R & T Furniture, especially when her grandchildren would come to visit.
Marilyn was a loving mother, grandmother (Gram and Cuckoo as she was affectionately known), and great-grandmother. She was always taking care of everyone, even in her last moments with us. She would always have homemade goodies on hand for her daily family visits and host cookouts, birthdays and holidays. She was the center that brought her family together. She was always keeping up to date on current events and what her family members were doing – ready for great conversation and laughter. The memories will stay with us forever.
Marilyn’s family would like to extend their deepest gratitude to Dr. Robert Klugman for his care over the years and to the medical teams at UMass Memorial Medical Center – University Campus for their expert, professional and loving care.
Family and friends are respectfully invited to attend visiting hours on Friday, February 7, 2020 at the Chiampa Funeral Home ~ The Sumner House, 5 Church Road, On the Common, Shrewsbury Center from 5:00 – 7:00 pm. A Funeral Service celebrating Marilyn’s life will be held at Church of the Nativity, 45 Howard Street, Northborough on Saturday, February 8, 2020 at 1:00 pm.
In Lieu of flowers, donations may be made to MSPCA-Angell, Attn: Donations, 350 South Huntington Ave, Boston, MA 02130.
