PORTLAND – Nellie I. Bourget, 76, died unexpectedly Jan. 25, 2024 at the Barron Center.
She was born Dec. 13, 1948 in Bristol Conn. She married Charles Bourget and the couple lived in Lewiston for many years, later moving together to the Hawthorne House, Brunswick. After Charles’ death in 2009, Nellie moved into Coastal Shores, Brunswick until she was taken into the care of the Barron Center.
Sweet, shy Nelli found affection wherever she was. She smiled often, responded warmly to friendship, and watched people with interest. She liked soft things, stuffed animals, and having her nails polished. She enjoyed dogs, having her hair brushed, being hugged. She could be startling astute about people and relationships. She was sometimes shrewd, sometime funny, sometime cheerful. She tried to be content.
Nellie counted on life being orderly. She became anxious with change. Being peaceful was important to her, as was knowing what came next and being familiar with people, places, and events. God and her husband Charlie were her most familiar memories (though God was a bit hard for her to comprehend. Church contact mattered.
She had married her first husband young and endured his death in an accident. She had a daughter who died young. Her mother died. She, herself, suffered a series of illnesses that left her anxious. Her long marriage to Charlie, ended with him dying too soon. In all of this, Nellie maintained an acceptance that was accommodatingly polite.
She inspired fondness and gave it back gently. She inspired the wish to do well by her. Existing on the edges of systematized society, she was throughout her life truly surrounded by the “kindness of strangers”
An expression of gratitude is due to the everyone at the Barron center, Coastal Shores, and Hawthorne House who looked after Nellie with unfailing care.
Nellie will be missed. Her wish was to be interred this spring in the St. Paul’s Memorial Garden, Brunswick with her husband, Charles.
Memories and condolences can be shared at http://www.brackettfh.com.
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