Obituary for Eleanor M Holmes (Bissell)
Eleanor May (Bissell) Holmes was born in Keene, New Hampshire and later relocated to Norwood, Massachusetts where she attended high school.
Her first working position, after she graduated from High School in ‘43, was at Bendex in Norwood, MA running a grinder that made rotors for the Navy during World War II. She also worked a Turret Lathe and a large Blanchard Grinder. As the war was winding down, she was transferred to the blueprint department.
Next, she took a position in the receivables office at Kendall Mills, Walpole, MA. This is where she met her husband, George Holmes, of seventy years. After they were married in ’49, she worked as a dispatcher for the taxi company that her husband and James Garner owned in Walpole.
In the 1950’s, she and her husband purchased a home in Millis, MA where they raised their four children and resided for nearly seventy years.
Holmes was an award-winning artist who developed her technique at Dean College, Franklin. She studied under Pauline Havener and Mr. Gilfoy. She began teaching art in the mid-seventies which has been her passion for over fifty years. She taught at The Center in Medfield, Medfield Adult Continuing Education, Millis Senior Center and privately. At the age of 93, she continued to instruct with the Dwight-Derby House Artists.
Eleanor has been a member of many art associations including Franklin Art Association, Norwood Art Association, The Milford Artist Guild and Blackstone Valley Art Association. She has also served on the Millis Cultural Council board.
Eleanor passed away peacefully at the Stanley Tippett House in Needham on July 9, 2020 of cancer. She was 95 years old. Eleanor was the beloved wife of George Holmes who died in April 2019. She was the daughter of the late Clinton Bissell and Edith (Ostrom) (Bissell) Hale and the devoted mother of Janet Holmes of CT, Donald Holmes of Norfolk and his companion Deborah Legge, Cheryl O’Malley and her husband James of Medfield, and Robert Holmes and wife Deborah of Norton. She was the doting grandmother of Jessica Carr and husband Tim, Charlene Thibodeau and husband John, Mark Holmes, Mike O’Malley. and wife Jocelyn Scheintaub, Jennifer Gabriel and husband Daniel, Kaitlyn Holmes, Casey Holmes, Nancy Holmes and Bryan Holmes. She was also blessed with ten great grandchildren: Elijah, Michaela, Janelle, Elora, Jacob, Matthew, Emily, Justin, Nathaniel, and William.
A private funeral service will be held for Eleanor on Thursday, July 16, 2020 at the Church of Christ, Millis, MA followed by interment at Prospect Hill Cemetery, Millis. Private visiting hours will be the evening before, Wednesday, July 15, 2020 at Roberts Mitchell Caruso Funeral Home, Medfield, MA. Face coverings will be required for both the Church and the Funeral Home, and both will be restricted to 40% capacity.
Her first working position, after she graduated from High School in ‘43, was at Bendex in Norwood, MA running a grinder that made rotors for the Navy during World War II. She also worked a Turret Lathe and a large Blanchard Grinder. As the war was winding down, she was transferred to the blueprint department.
Next, she took a position in the receivables office at Kendall Mills, Walpole, MA. This is where she met her husband, George Holmes, of seventy years. After they were married in ’49, she worked as a dispatcher for the taxi company that her husband and James Garner owned in Walpole.
In the 1950’s, she and her husband purchased a home in Millis, MA where they raised their four children and resided for nearly seventy years.
Holmes was an award-winning artist who developed her technique at Dean College, Franklin. She studied under Pauline Havener and Mr. Gilfoy. She began teaching art in the mid-seventies which has been her passion for over fifty years. She taught at The Center in Medfield, Medfield Adult Continuing Education, Millis Senior Center and privately. At the age of 93, she continued to instruct with the Dwight-Derby House Artists.
Eleanor has been a member of many art associations including Franklin Art Association, Norwood Art Association, The Milford Artist Guild and Blackstone Valley Art Association. She has also served on the Millis Cultural Council board.
Eleanor passed away peacefully at the Stanley Tippett House in Needham on July 9, 2020 of cancer. She was 95 years old. Eleanor was the beloved wife of George Holmes who died in April 2019. She was the daughter of the late Clinton Bissell and Edith (Ostrom) (Bissell) Hale and the devoted mother of Janet Holmes of CT, Donald Holmes of Norfolk and his companion Deborah Legge, Cheryl O’Malley and her husband James of Medfield, and Robert Holmes and wife Deborah of Norton. She was the doting grandmother of Jessica Carr and husband Tim, Charlene Thibodeau and husband John, Mark Holmes, Mike O’Malley. and wife Jocelyn Scheintaub, Jennifer Gabriel and husband Daniel, Kaitlyn Holmes, Casey Holmes, Nancy Holmes and Bryan Holmes. She was also blessed with ten great grandchildren: Elijah, Michaela, Janelle, Elora, Jacob, Matthew, Emily, Justin, Nathaniel, and William.
A private funeral service will be held for Eleanor on Thursday, July 16, 2020 at the Church of Christ, Millis, MA followed by interment at Prospect Hill Cemetery, Millis. Private visiting hours will be the evening before, Wednesday, July 15, 2020 at Roberts Mitchell Caruso Funeral Home, Medfield, MA. Face coverings will be required for both the Church and the Funeral Home, and both will be restricted to 40% capacity.