Clara Mary Johnson

Old Orchard Beach, Maine & Berlin, NH Clara Mary Johnson of 10 Goosefare Drive, Old Orchard Beach, Maine and formerly of Willard Street, Berlin, NH passed away early Saturday Morning, May 11, 2013 at Seal Rock Health Care in Saco, Maine following a period of declining health. She was 89 years old. Born on July 21, 1923 in Berlin, NH, she was the daughter of Rocco and Amelia (DiProspero) Memolo. A lifelong resident of Berlin, NH, Clara was a 1941 graduate of Berlin High School, where she excelled in business courses. For many years, she was the office manager for Selective Service officed in Berlin in 1941. Following the Vietnam War, the office closed and she then became employed as a claims taker for the New Hampshire Department of Employment Security until her retirement. Clara loved her work and the people who worked with her. On June 30, 1947, she married Raymond Johnson, her devoted husband, saddened by his death on February 12, 2005. Clara was a devoted member of Good Shepard Parish, she was a very spiritual woman. Her greatest joy was her love of family. Her family was her lifelong work of art. Whether it was her role of loving wife, daughter, sister, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, aunt or cousin, she gave all she had to everyone. She loved to cook Italian food, decorate her home and was always ready for any family tradition large and small. She leaves her loving daughter Deborah Elcik of Old Orchard Beach, Maine, and her son-in-law Andrew of Edgewood Health Care Ctr. in Portsmouth, N.H. She also leaves a granddaughter Meagan Desjardins and her husband Ralph of Biddeford, Main. Seven great-grandchildren: Becky, Jamie, Ryanne, Nicholas, Drew, Olivia, and Jayden Desjardins, all of Biddeford, Maine, two brothers Tony Memolo and his wife Florence of Berlin and Ralph Memolo and his wife Sylvia of Brookline, Mass, and a sister Shirley Miller and her husband Kenneth of Lyndonville, VT. Additionally, she is survived by a brother-in-law George Chatis of Melrose, Ma. and a sister-in-law Beverly Fletcher of Tavares, Florida. She is loved dearly by her many nieces and nephews. She was preceded by her brother Fio and his wife Mllie, sisters, Donelia and Doris, and her nephew Jonathan Memolo. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 10:00am Thursday, May 16 at St. Anne Church of Good Shepherd Parish in Berlin. Rev. Dan Sinibaldi will officiate. Burial will follow at Holy Family Cemetery in Gorham. Calling hours will be held from 6:00pm to 8:00pm Wednesday, May 15 at Fleury-Patry Funeral Home, 72 High Street, Berlin, NH. Memorial donations may be made in her memory to Seal Rock Rehabilitation Center, 88 Harbor Drive, Saco, ME 04072.