Peabody – Edith C. McGuinness, 88, died peacefully on November 17, 2022 at Brooksby Village in Peabody. She had battled Alzheimer’s disease for several years surrounded by a loving family.
Born in Boston on December 2, 1933, Eadie was the only child of Vincenzo and Catherine (Crisafulli) Calcagno of Novara di Sicilia, Italy. She was raised in Nashua, New Hampshire in a large and loving Italian family who embraced her with lifelong devotion. For most of her life, Eadie lived in the Cape-style house her father built for the family in Lexington until 2009, when she moved into a retirement home. A graduate of Somerville High School, Eadie prepared for a successful corporate career with Katherine Gibbs at school.
“Amidst all the changes in women’s roles, Eadie was my inspiration growing up in the early ’70s,” said her stepdaughter, Sheila McGuinness. “In a period before the mid-century rise of feminism, she trained as a legal secretary, later as a paralegal, and then worked her way to success at legendary Boston institutions like the State Street Bank and the Cabot Corporation, overseeing real estate affairs . ”
In her thirties, Eadie met her beloved husband, the late James McGuinness, and their six children, who welcomed her into their family. The whims of caring for aging parents and raising children saw their romance thrive for 15 years before they married in 1984. They remained together until his death three years later.
While she continued to thrive in her job, Eadie showed great compassion as she met the day-to-day needs of her aging parents in hospitals and nursing homes. She showed her true colors when she left her husband’s job in the last year of his life to take care of him at home. After his death, she ended her career before joining Cabot Carbon Ltd as Corporate Secretary in 1999. UK retired. Throughout her time she has been an avid traveler and patron of the arts – passions she shared with her family. A dedicated volunteer, she helped read to Peabody’s elementary school children.
Faith was Eadie’s center and her rock. She attended Catholic women’s retreats and was an active communicant at St. Brigid’s Parish in Lexington and St. Agnes’ Church in Middleton. She will be remembered for her deep kindness, easy laugh, boundless work ethic, big heart and sparkling blue eyes.
She is survived by many devoted cousins in New Hampshire, Massachusetts, New York, Virginia and Florida. They also survive six stepchildren: Maureen McGuinness of Charlton, MA; Sharon McGuinness of Hazel Park, MI; Sheila McGuinness and Partners, Michael Wright of Provincetown; Shawn and his wife Mary Louise McGuinness of Moultonboro, NH; Patricia McGuinness of Highlands Ranch, CO; and Theresa McGuinness of Swampscott, MA. She also leaves behind six step-grandchildren and three step-great-grandchildren.
A funeral service will be celebrated on Monday, November 28, 2022 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Brigid Parish, 2001 Massachusetts Ave., Lexington, followed by burial in Mt. Auburn Cemetery, 580 Mount Auburn St., Cambridge. Condolences may be left on the Conway website, Cahill-Brodeur Funeral Home, 82 Lynn St., Peabody (www.ccbfuneral.com). Memorial donations can be made in Edith’s name to Care Dimensions Hospice, 75 Sylvan St., Suite B-102, Danvers, MA 01923.
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