Maureen was born in Brooklyn on April 10th to Sheila and Charles. She was the older of two daughters. She is survived by her two children, Charles and Denise, and her daughter-in-law Hunter. Maureen is survived by her 4 grandchildren, Carter, John Robert, Molly and Sarah. She is also survived by her sister Ann and her husband, Bill, as well as her niece, Laurie, her husband and their children.
Maureen attended St. Mary’s College School of Nursing where she met her husband, Robert, while he attended Notre Dame, whom she promptly married after graduation. They resided in Scotch Plains, New Jersey while Robert attended graduate school. After the adoption of their 2 children, they moved to Charlotte, North Carolina where they lived happily for 11 years. The family then moved to Palm Beach Gardens, Florida in 1978. Maureen’s husband unexpectedly passed on December 27, 1984.
Although Maureen’s lifelong nursing career began in a hospital, she has held positions where she visited the sick and dying in their homes, worked to remove and rehabilitate child abusers, served the public at the County Health Department and nursed those in need at the County Home in Florida. Maureen also taught medical assistants at a technical school. After Maureen got her Master’s degree in Science at Nova University in 1982, she held several administrative positions, one of which included fighting Medicare fraud.
Maureen never hesitated to help those in need. She believed everyone deserved dignity as they endured illness, injury and, especially, while dying. She brought her ailing mother to Florida to help care for her. Later, Maureen moved to the west coast of Florida to care for her aging mother-in-law.
Maureen left behind many friends and neighbors who thought highly of her. Most recently, she thoroughly enjoyed the fellowship of those at her retirement community in Statesville. She kept in frequent touch with her fellow college alumni. She had many dear friendships from her time in the Soroptimist Club in Florida as well as friends in Richmond where she also lived.
Never allowing “grass to grow” under her feet, as they say, Maureen had a brilliant mind and loved mystery novels. She was extremely thorough and efficient and had incredible tenacity and patience for tedious tasks such as sewing, quilting and crafting. Maureen enjoyed playing bridge and other games and was never afraid of a challenge. She could solve or fix anything with the proper tools. Maureen’s favorite saying was, “If it’s worth doing, it’s worth doing well.”
Maureen’s deep lifelong Catholic faith had always given her great comfort and fortitude. She believed that one should do something instead of complain about it. She fervently believed that the best solution to self-pity or sorrow was to serve others. In the last few weeks of her life, Maureen continued to assist her fellow seniors to find proper healthcare coverage through the Shiip program of which she was a volunteer counselor.
The family would like to extend their appreciation to those doctors, nurses, CNA’s and cafeteria workers who provided compassionate care toward Mrs. Maureen Busse at Iredell Memorial Hospital and at Valley Nursing and Rehab.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to Citizens for Animal Welfare, since Maureen cherished the company of her rescued cats. They can be sent to P.O. Box 88, Harmony, NC 28634, or through email online at: [email protected]. It is also available through Petfinder or adoptapet.com.
A memorial service will be held at a later date.
Those wishing to leave an online condolence for the family may do so at
www.bunchjohnsonfuneralhome.com.
Bunch-Johnson Funeral Home is honored to be serving the Busse family.
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