In Memory of

Elizabeth

Quist

(Martin)

Obituary for Elizabeth Quist (Martin)

Mrs. Elizabeth “Betsy” Quist passed away at the Odd Fellows Nursing Home in Worcester on Sunday, April 16, 2017. Born in Worcester, she was the daughter of Charles F. and Edna H. (Chenery) Martin and lived most of her life in West Boylston. On December 29th she had celebrated her 100th birthday with children, grandchildren and great grandchildren attending.

She often recalled riding a horse-drawn barge to school, the Goodale Street School – then the only school in West Boylston -- from which she graduated. During World War II she worked for Norton Company.

Betsy was a long time choral singer, having sung with the Chaminades, the Worcester Chorus, and the Master Singers in such places as Boston, Detroit and Carnegie Hall. She was an active member of the First Congregational Church in West Boylston and sang in the choir for many years. She was a member of the Forbush Bird Club of Worcester and also enjoyed gardening and cooking. She was known for her baking and was quick to deliver meals to friends and neighbors who might be in need.

She was descended from Lambert Chenery who came to Salem from England in 1630 and from Ephriam Chenery, who served several times as a Selectman in Medfield and who raised a company of militia to serve in the Revolution. Dr. Isaac Chenery was a well-known doctor in Holden and West Boylston 1770-1822. Samuel Chenery Damon from Holden was the first newspaper publisher west of the Mississippi and the grandfather of Susan Gale who along with her husband, Samuel Gale, donated the Gale Free Library in Holden.

Betsey was married to Charles R. Quist, a building contractor, civic and church leader, and former West Boylston Selectman. He had served in the Marine Corps in World War II making the landings on Guadalcanal and New Britain. They were married in 1944 shortly after his return from the Pacific. He died in 1986.

Mrs. Quist leaves two sons, Colonel Burton C. Quist of Middletown, RI and Steven J. Quist of West Boylston; four grandchildren, Andrew C. Quist of Fort Collins, Colorado, Ashley E. Quist of West Boylston, Major Erik C. C. Quist of Occoquan, Virginia, and Captain Carl Quist of Camp Pendleton, California; and two great-grandchildren, Isak C. Quist and Laina I. Quist also of Camp Pendleton.

Funeral services and burial will be private and at the convenience of the family.