Beatrice Cohen

Beatrice Cohen died peacefully at the age of 96 on December 29, 2024, at Hancock Park Rehabilitation and Nursing Center in Quincy, Massachusetts. Born in New Bedford, Massachusetts, to Gussie (Lipshitz) and David Feingold, Beatrice was the second youngest of eight children (the designation of youngest going to her identical twin sister, Shirley).

Beatrice graduated from New Bedford High School and held several bookkeeping positions before moving to New York City with her twin. She continued as a bookkeeper until she married her husband, George, in 1956 and started a family. She returned to her profession when her children began school and kept at it until her retirement.

Beatrice spent most of her life in Huntington, New York. Her passions included gardening, antiquing, dancing, knitting, and spending time with her four daughters. She and George enjoyed entertaining, especially her brothers’ and sisters’ families. Beatrice loved animals and had a succession of dogs and cats. She also loved card games and was a proficient bridge player. In her later years, she moved on to mah jongg and Bingo.

After her husband died in 1992, Beatrice continued to keep up the house in Huntington but also spent time visiting and vacationing with her daughters and their families. She filled her days with friends—playing cards, going to dances, and seeing plays in New York City. She lived to have fun and laugh. Despite some health challenges, she was always cheerful and never dwelled on the negative.

In 2014, she moved back to Massachusetts, where two of her daughters resided. She spent her last 10 years in independent and assisted living facilities, where she made new friends and reveled in never having to cook or do housework again.

Beatrice is survived by her four daughters: Mona Cohen and her husband, Mike Dioguardo; Debra Phelan and her partner, Mike Micheletti; Donna VanHelene and her husband, Eric; and Judy Vigiletti and her husband, Ken. She is also survived by five grandchildren—Julian and Olivia Vigiletti, and Alexander, Sophia, and Tyler VanHelene—and more than a dozen nieces and nephews.

Beatrice had been the last surviving sibling of Gussie and David’s children: Solly, Sammy, Ann (Miller), Joseph, Rosie (Creed), Ruth (Swern), and Shirley (Bernklau). She will be laid to rest next to her husband—and near her parents and several of her brothers and sisters—in a private service at the Tifereth Israel Cemetery in New Bedford, Massachusetts. A celebration of her life will be held at a later date.

Donations may be made in her name to your local animal rescue group.