Miriam Anita Mason

When Miriam Anita Mason walked into the room, those in her company felt energy and enthusiastic spontaneity. This was just one example of who Anita was and how she impacted those around her. Anita was a clever and gregarious person who always sought out the finest attributes in other people. It was as if Anita wanted to share all of their experiences, revel in their lives and celebrate their discoveries. Anita had tireless generosity and boundless enthusiasm that would serve her well throughout her life.

Anita was born on July 14, 1956 at Osteopathic Hospital in Portland, Maine. She was the adoptive daughter of Celia and Max Goldfield. Anita was raised in Milton, Mass. Always at the ready with a good joke, she grew up to be quite a humorous person. While some who knew Anita might describe her as an idealist, her friends and family understood well that Anita was always in pursuit of life’s endless possibilities and opportunities available to her.

Anita was raised as an only child, later finding her four biological siblings: Nancy, Suzy, Rosina and John. Anita was very accepting and supportive of her family. She was perceived as the central person in her family in terms of keeping communication open between the family members. Whenever discord or tension arose within the home, Anita was typically the member who brought about resolution and harmony. These traits served Anita well in her adult life and, along with her wit, outgoing personality, and understanding of others, drew the admiration of many who knew her.

Anita lost her father at an early age, giving her the maturity and ability to empathize and identify with a vast array of people and personality types. This quality drew her into a diverse group of friends and acquaintances. Anita was intelligent and had little trouble getting along with her peers. She was almost-always the first to jump in when it came to playing games or participating in other childhood activities. Anita took part in tennis and swimming. She was a Girl Scout. In her spare time, she liked playing the piano. Anita had the ability to find amusement with almost any activity she and the many childhood friends she shared might discover.

During her high school years, Anita responded enthusiastically to any new project and was regularly in search of one adventure after another. She graduated from Milton High School in 1974. Anita was a very good student, and generally did well in her courses. Anita absorbed as much as she could from all of her teachers and was consistently able to tackle conceptual and abstract problems, using her imagination to master her assignments. For Anita, school often became just an extension of playtime, thanks to her ability to turn just about anything into a game. Classmates considered Anita a good listener, knowing that when necessary, they could go to her to discuss just about anything. Her favorite class in high school was English. She hated math!

As a result of her comfort level with tackling new theories and her love of learning, she did well in college. She attended Welsey College in Welsey, Mass. Anita was very adaptable, a quality that helped her make the transition from high school to college with little difficulty. As a result, Anita's problem solving skills and thirst for new knowledge almost guaranteed that she enjoyed virtually every class she took. Anita was always in quest of new things to learn and experience

With a talent for making acquaintances easily which in turn brought her an endless stream of friends, Anita was very sociable and could blend without effort into any social group. Outgoing and intuitive, Anita was easy to know and demonstrated a deep concern for others. She always seemed aware of what was going on with people around her and throughout her life she maintained meaningful relationships. While growing up, some of her best friends were Mike and Chris Amato and Donna Cohen.

On April 24, 1977, Anita married Paul David Mason at Temple Shalom of Milton, Mass. Anita's skill at “building bridges” played an important role in her ability to make her new family happy. She was quite sensitive towards Paul's needs, showing her constant concern and fondness. Anita was tenderhearted and sensitive, qualities that served her well in helping to nurture her family.

Anita was a natural and creative parent who was willing to provide her family with all sorts of new and interesting experiences. For Anita, parenting was a particularly enjoyable and pleasurable part of her life. Every activity, from chores to bedtime routines, became a game in the Mason home. Anita's skill at understanding her children's feelings, her sensitivity to their needs, and her gift for gentle persuasion enabled her to find novel solutions to any problem or situation that might crop up. Anita was blessed with two children: Nicole and Adam. She was also blessed with two grandchildren, Cierra and Gavin.

Anita was uplifted by new ideas and was excited by life’s possibilities, traits that made her an exceptional worker. Her first job was working for a lawyer, then she worked as a dental assistant and spent years as a transcriptionist and then transitioned in accounting, where she held various positions. Anita was enterprising, inventive and working against deadlines seemed to energize her. Anita had the uncanny ability to identify a win/win solution to just about any problem, possibly because of her gift for insight. Anita's fellow workers saw her as a supporter and a mentor.

Because Anita loved to have a broad variety of activities in her life, she took advantage of the opportunity to pursue numerous hobbies. Her favorite pursuits were music, reading mystery novels, playing computer and board games, watching Turner Classic Movies, Alfred Hitchcock and The Twilight Zone, old TV shows and cartoons and listened to the Coast to Coast radio series. Anita had a knack for being able to multi-task in order to create time for all of her favorite pastimes. However, Anita's ever-present concern for others always took precedent.

Anita derived much satisfaction from participating in and watching sports. Her charisma, supportive nature and ability to improvise when called upon to do so all made perfect attributes for enjoying a great many sporting activities. Anita was also something of a sports fan and enjoyed watching her favorite events whenever she got the opportunity. Tops on her list were Patriot games every Sunday.

Though she never did anything solely for individual recognition, Anita's ingenuity, resourcefulness, and selflessness, earned her accolades for her many lifelong efforts. Some of her most prestigious awards included the Simply the Best Award at the Luxor for her accounting abilities.

Anita's love of improvising in her daily life was a perfect fit for her enjoyment of traveling. Her favorite vacations were ones that were planned. Traveling in a casual manor fit her personality well. Excited about seeing changing scenery and constantly looking for the enjoyment life could offer, Anita took her vacations seriously, well, as seriously as she possibly could. Favorite vacations included cruising the ocean (while reading her book on the balcony), loved the four seasons especially fall in New England, rainy places, zoos and theme parks with the grandchildren.

Anita was a lover of animals and cherished her pets. Noel the cat, was a best friend for five years. She always cared for past family pets, like the pet parakeets she would allow to fly around the house and cats Precious and Snowball.

When Anita's retirement finally came in 2013, Anita handled it the way she usually did. She adapted and, like everything in her life, made it satisfying. Because she was such a flexible person and able to adjust to any situation, retirement was just another enjoyable change of pace for Anita to master. In retirement, she found new pleasure in spending quality time with her children and grandchildren and continued to stay in touch with her old friends while nurturing her family.

Anita Mason passed away on December 6, 2018 at Henderson Hospital. Her husband Paul, son Adam, daughter Nicole (Chris), granddaughter Cierra and grandson Gavin survive her. Services were held at Palm Southwest Mortuary. Anita was laid to rest in Davis Memorial Park across from the airplanes she loved to watch land.

There was always a certain style and inventiveness to Anita. She was a dynamic, self-expressive person who was forever looking to celebrate the endless possibilities life had to offer. She had a knack for being clever, creative and witty, and for others, was a joy to be around. While she was often fiercely independent, it seemed as if many others looked to Anita Mason for inspiration, leadership, wisdom and even courage. Anita was always more than willing to share life’s experiences with her loved ones. Her endless thoughtfulness, care and generosity will always remain in her family's heart.