Phyllis Goldstein

Phyllis was born in 1934 to Hyman and Jeanette Silverstein and raised in the Dorchester and Mattapan neighborhoods of Boston. She met many of her life-long friends in middle school and at Jeremiah E. Burke High School. The friendships she established in school were one of the most meaningful aspects of her life. In middle school, she met Anita Alperin, Fay, and Carol and those close friendships endured throughout their lives. Phyllis and Anita were particularly close throughout their lives. They lived next door or close by to each other for most of their adult lives. In their later years, when they lived far apart, they would call each other every Wednesday and Anita’s daughter, Sheryl, continued those phone calls to Phyllis after Anita passed away. Their children also became very close friends, and remain close friends to this day.

Phyllis was an excellent student and consistently achieved high grades throughout her schooling. She could have gone to college when she graduated high school, but there were limited opportunities for women with college degrees at that time. Instead, she went to work in Boston, met her Husband Herbert F. Goldstein (deceased in 2004) and raised two children, Staci Linet and Peter Goldstein. She was a loving and dedicated wife and mother. Her love and support for her husband was evident throughout their lives; sharing their love and dedication to their family, enjoying many happy moments together with friends, travelling across the country in a camper, travelling internationally, and working with him to run their family business for many years. She continued to reminisce fondly of their time together after he was gone and looked forward to joining him in the afterlife.

She was also a very loving mother who did everything she could to help and support her children and their families. She had a particularly close relationship with her daughter Staci and son-in-law Rick and spent many happy moments with them, especially at family events, holidays, and birthdays. She enjoyed many happy moments with her seven grandchildren and their families: Janette and Dan Lepore and their sons Adrian and Julian; Brian Phinney; Adam and Samantha Linet and their children Leo and impending baby GIRL; Jaclyn Tancreti and Jeff Tancreti and their sons Blake and Brooks; Evan Goldstein; Cierra and Tim McGee; and Bryce Goldstein.

Her relationship with her sister Alta and grand-niece Jennifer were particularly important to her. She and Alta, and their families, were very close throughout their lives despite Alta being ten years older than her. Her love for Jennifer was also very strong. A particularly happy moment for Phyllis was having the opportunity to be a bridesmaid at Jennifer’s wedding.

Despite being busy raising a family and helping with the family business, Phyllis managed to find time to contribute to the community. She volunteered for a number of philanthropic organizations, including various times when she was the president of her temple’s sisterhood. She regularly contributed to the society for the blind by converting books to braille, and enjoyed drawing and painting when she had time. Several of her paintings were used to decorate the family home. Once her children had left home and were raising their own families, she realized that she had time to get the college degree she always wanted. Despite being in her mid-to-late 40’s and not having taken part in any formal education for almost 30 years, she decided to go back to school to get her nursing degree. It wasn’t surprising to anyone who knew her well that she became one of the top students in her nursing class. Her love of learning and willingness to push herself to try new or challenging things helped her graduate with honors from her nursing school and she subsequently enjoyed helping other people while working as a nurse. She was particularly happy while working at New England Sinai hospital in Stoughton, MA, where she made many more lifelong friends.

After the passing of Herb, she enjoyed spending time traveling with some of her nursing friends and was also an avid Mahjong, player and played until a few years ago. During the final chapter of her life, she enjoyed her 5 years at the Atria Lincoln. She was very grateful for the gift of friendships she made. Once at Oakland Grove, she received wonderful care from the various caregivers who helped her: Christian Magnell, Chaplin; Paula Simone, Primary Care RB; Karen Sargent, Chaplin; Nidira Ramunno, RN. They were particularly important to her as their friendship and care made the final chapter of her life a much happier time than it may have been. Also her aides, Latisha and Genesis.

Phyllis was preceded in death by her loving husband Herbert and is survived by her son Peter, daughter Staci and her husband Rick, and their children, grandchildren, and great grandchildren.

A graveside service will be held at the Pride of Brockton Lodge Cemetery, 197 South Street, Stoughton, MA on Monday, August 5, 2024 at 11 AM.

If you would like to make a donation in Phyllis’s name, we recommend a donation to Athena Hospice of Rhode Island at www.Athenahospiceofri.com or a hospice of your choice.