Edna F. (Bernau) Allen

Edna F. (Bernau) Allen of Quincy passed away peacefully on September 7, 2022. She
was 94 years old. She was the beloved wife of Richard Story Allen for 57 years and
sister of the late Phyllis Macomber of Nantucket. A lifelong resident of the south shore,
she was fond of her native Milton, raised a family with her husband in Quincy and
enjoyed many summers at the family home in Harwichport.

Her humility was always evident when she referred to being born on April Fool’s Day
1928. After Milton High School and Perry Normal School of Curry College, she took a
road trip west with three other women from Milton, ending up in San Francisco, which
she always referred to as her favorite city. She became a kindergarten teacher in North
Attleboro and Braintree. One evening in 1954, she took a train from North Station to
meet Richard Story Allen of Danvers who a mutual friend suggested she might like to
meet. They were married the following August. Hurricane Diane of August 1955 brought
havoc to parts of New England and prevented a number of attendants from getting to
their wedding. As an engagement present, Edna gave to Richard, a navy veteran of two
wars a Chelsea navy clock, which he faithfully wound every Tuesday evening and which
continues to chime to this day.

Edna and Richard bought a home in Quincy and raised three children there. When
Richard decided he’d seen enough of the sea in two wars, they found a summer place
in Maine, Edna gave up summers on the Cape in house built in 1934 for a more rustic
abode in Maine built in 1794. There she drew water from a well, having primed the
pump first, and applied baking soda to her children’s countless bee stings. When
children went away to Northfield Mount Hermon School and various colleges, Edna
turned her attention to endeavors in the community. She delivered food for Meals on
Wheels, served refreshments at Red Cross Blood Drives and was part of the Women’s
Alliance at her beloved Unitarian Universalist Church in Quincy. While her sister Phyllis
Macomber (d.2014) was in Washington, Ankara and New York, Edna looked after her
parents in Milton.

Summering on the cape nurtured in her a love for clam chowder and a lobster roll. After
Richard passed away in 2009, she spent evenings with her beloved PBS offerings of
“Doc Martin” and “Midsomer Murders.” Prior to these, she would report on the phone
that, “I actually got a couple of answers right,” on her dear “Jeopardy.” On summer
evenings, she always enjoyed hearing Joe Castiglione on the Red Sox broadcasts.
She enjoyed being a homemaker and loved when her house was filled with friends and
family. She was always available to anyone who needed a helping hand. She cherished
her grandchildren and enjoyed attending their many school and sporting events.
She is survived by her children, David Allen of Peterborough and his wife Holly, Melissa
Fitzgerald of Quincy and her husband Steven, and Martha Petrosius of Quincy, her
grandchildren Richard Allen and his wife Lindsey, Page Allen and her fiancee Michael
Powell, Robert Fitzgerald, Matthew Fitzgerald, Jennifer Petrosius, Allison Hraibe, and
by one day, Queen Elizabeth II.

Visiting hours will be at the Alfred D. Thomas Funeral Home in Milton Sunday,
September 11 12-2 PM A graveside service at Walnut Grove Cemetery in Davers at
11:30 Monday September 12 will be followed by a coalition at the Danvers Historical
Society’s Tapley Memorial Hall.
 

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