Obituary: Marie Elizabeth (Kane) Allen

Obituary from R. J. Ross Funeral Home:

Marie Elizabeth (Kane) Allen, 87, of Norfolk, passed away Oct. 10, 2013 after a short stay in Norwood Hospital with family at her side.

She was pre-deceased by her husband of 38 years, the late John J. “Bud” Allen Sr.

Born in Dedham April 11, 1926, daughter of the late Harold J. “Poppy” and Loretta (Dervan) Kane, Marie was a graduate of St. Thomas Aquinas High School in Jamaica Plain, Boston. She worked as a bank teller at Norfolk County Trust prior to becoming a homemaker and moving to Norfolk, where she and Bud raised a lively brood of seven children and their accompanying pets.

Marie’s love for her family was often expressed in a well-timed batch of cookies or homemade treat. She was an accomplished baker, quilter and seamstress who shared her creative spirit with all. Marie especially enjoyed a good swim and long walks beside the ocean. She was an avid reader who loved mysteries, and was intellectually curious. Marie developed an interest in astronomy, and it was not unusual to find her in slippers in the backyard using her telescope to search for a star. Even given the raucous nature of a household filled with seven children, Marie lived a quiet life. Or, in the spirit of the word scrambles she loved, she lived quite a life.

She will forever be remembered for quilted dolls, special Halloween treat bags, and for holding "Anne of Greene Gables" movie marathons with pony-crazed granddaughters who didn’t have cable television. 

Marie is survived by her children Mary Elizabeth Varey, Mary Judith Larmey and James S. Allen all of Norfolk, John J. Allen, Jr. of Franklin, Robert E. Allen of Walpole and Mary Patricia Allen of Old Greenwich, Conn.; her grandchildren Jennifer, Karyn and Andrew Varey, John, Maureen and Mariesa Allen, Callie and Katy Woodhams and Courtney and Denise Allen; her seven great-grandchildren including Philip Lippolis who is kicking cancer so he can return to first grade; and her siblings Dorothy Rose Kane of Norfolk and Harold J. Kane Jr. of Norwood. also survive her. She was preceded in death by her son William “Buddha” Allen and sister Loretta (Sally) Kane. 

Burial in Norfolk Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to: Philip’s Fight Fund, c/o Dedham Savings Bank, 1428 Main Street, Walpole, MA 02081.