Beverly F. (Morrill) Macburnie

Beverly F. (Morrill) MacBurnie, RN, MEd, 87, passed away at Advinia Care Country Center on April 13, 2024 after a long illness. She was born in Newburyport, the daughter of the late Everett and Muriel (Chouinard) Morrill, and remained a lifelong resident. She was married for 66 years to another native Newburyporter, Robert W. MacBurnie. They have 2 daughters, Martha and Pamela. Both Bev and Bob came from large, extended families, who mostly stayed in the area, so family was an important part of her life. Birthdays, weddings, barbeques, family reunions, she was so happy to be there.

Bev was a proud member of the Newburyport High School Class of ’54 and for years they had both reunions and reunion meetings to plan the reunions! She got her RN through the Burbank Hospital School of Nursing, Fitchburg State College and remained close with several of her classmates. The art and science of nursing was her passion and her calling. She worked at the Hale Hospital in Haverhill, the Anna Jaques in Newburyport, and did private duty nursing. A strong proponent of vocational education, she went on to develop and direct health careers education programs at both Northeast Regional VocTech and Whittier Regional VocTech, at the secondary and post- secondary levels. She was in charge of Licensed Practical Nurse, Medical Assistant, and Dental Assistant programs. Her students are working in health care facilities throughout the region. When her daughters were in high school, she got her Masters degree in Education from Northeastern University. In the 1990s, she was active with the Board of Registration in Nursing and the Massachusetts Legislature that resulted in Governor Paul Cellucci signing an act expanding the role of nurses in the delivery of health care services.

She loved Atkinson Common. A longtime member of the Belleville Improvement Society, when Beverly became President of the organization, she expanded fundraising and grant writing, and oversaw the renovation of the park from the Plummer Ave entrance to the front of the park. Monuments were refurbished, trees planted, facilities updated. When she was no longer able to go herself, she’d ask for updates. What’s blooming? Is the fountain working? Have the beds been weeded?

She loved reading (fiction). She loved to travel, enjoying 6 trips to Europe, Montreal, a cross country driving trip with her brother Jeff, Bermuda, New Orleans, Florida and throughout New England. She loved soft fabrics, flowers, and just about any food that included whipped cream or a cream sauce.

Besides her husband and 2 daughters, Bev leaves behind 3 siblings: Richard Morrill, Jeffrey Morrill and his wife Tami Sullivan, and Susan Morrill Queenan and her husband Jay Queenan. She leaves her 100 year old uncle, Robert Chouinard, and a long list of cousins, nieces and nephews on both sides of the family, brother-in-law Duncan MacBurnie and his wife Barbara, sisters-in-law Christine MacBurnie and Sandra MacBurnie.

Bev insisted on no calling hours or funeral. But once the sadness has passed, there will be a true celebration of her long, successful, love-filled life. Donations in her honor can be made to the Belleville Improvement Society, PO Box 57, Nbpt MA 01950.