Maureen Margaret Barrett

Maureen Margaret (Cook) Barrett was born on September 29, 1940 in Newfoundland, Canada to John Frances Cook and Elizabeth (Caihill) Cook. Maureen passed away surrounded by family at home on April 5, 2023.

Maureen grew up on the coast of Harbor Main, Canada with her thirteen siblings Angeline (Cook) Ragsdale, Betty (Cook) Pennell, Mary (Cook) Ross, Jenny (Cook) Jamieson , Geraldine(Cook) Dwyer, Helen (Cook) Wittich, Carmel (Cook) St John, Annie (Cook) Wittich, Michael Cook, Adrian Cook, Howard Cook, Junior Cook , and Billy Cook. Some of her fondest childhood memories were skating & sledding on the frozen ponds near her home. Until that is when Angeline fell thru the ice….and Maureen was always fearful of the water.

When she was 22, she went on a blind date with a man who would become her husband of 59 years, William Macauley Barrett. Two days after their wedding, they immigrated to California. They enjoyed the California sunshine until two years later they discovered they would have twins, Dwayne and Teresa. Two years after that their daughter Lisa Ann came along.

In 1971 they left California and moved to Tennessee. While raising their family, Maureen obtained her GED, she and Bill became founding members of a church, Our Lady of the Lake Catholic church, and built a nonprofit thrift store to provide for the community of Hendersonville, Tennessee. Maureen knew from a young age that she had a calling to do God’s work, having early ambitions to become a nun. She worked in the local home for the aged for a few years as a young adult. For many years Maureen was the secretary of Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church and the bookkeeper at the thrift store in Hendersonville. The city of Hendersonville gave her an award, Volunteer of the Year, after 25 years of service. Even with all of these accomplishments, when asked what she was most proud of, she replied, “my children.”

In 1996, she and Bill moved to Freeport, Florida to be closer to her sister Angeline. In 2009, when Bill was diagnosed with cancer, they sought care in Longmont, Colorado with their daughter Teresa and her family.

Maureen was a founding and long term member of Our Lady of the Lake Catholic Church in Hendersonville, Tennessee, a member of Christ the King Catholic Church in Freeport, Florida, as well as St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in Longmont. One of her favorite things was attending Church with friends and family.

She also enjoyed crochet, puzzles, and decoupage, and held a soft spot for ice cream cones and licorice sticks. Her sweet tooth was nearly the size of her heart. Anyone and anything who needed help, she came to their aid. Homeless families in Hendersonville would regularly come to her store and she would give them gas money or clothing….whatever they needed.

Maureen is preceded in death by her husband William “Bill” Barrett, and her parents John & Elizabeth Cook. She is survived by her son Dwayne Barrett; daughters Teresa MacPhail (Keith) and Lisa McMahan (Bryan); her grandchildren Kacy Frantz, Amy Hardy, Brian McMahan Jr, Sean Barrett, Will Barrett, Marcel MacPhail and Abigail MacPhail; and her great-grandchildren Jonathan and Caroline Hardy.

Mass of Christian Burial will be held at 10:00 am Friday April 21, 2023, at St. John the Baptist Catholic Church. Memorial contributions may be made to the Longmont Humane Society.

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