Beverly Simpson, Oct. 26, 1932, to Aug. 30, 2025
Beverly was born in Springfield to Archer Roberts Simpson and Maude Ethel Gordon. She attended Longmeadow grammar schools and loved all of her education. She was delighted to attend the MacDuffie school in Granby knowing it was a special place. Beverly then followed her sister Barbara to attend Wellesley College, graduating in 1954. She loved travel and after college graduation set out impulsively, with no schedule, to visit Europe for three months. Around 2020, Bev reactivated her contacts with Wellesley and became class president.
Beverly taught in our public schools for a few years, and entered marriage with J. Knickerbocker Stone. They had three children, John “Kip” Stone, Elizabeth and Nathaniel. All survive Beverly.
In the 1970s when we were struck with the energy crisis Beverly founded “Wood Heat” and imported “Godin” stoves that are made in France. Godin ultimately awarded the entire United States as her territory. Beverly set up her stove store on Washington Street in
Marblehead, across from the Lee Mansion. Customer visits were very few for wood stoves. To increase activity and foot traffic, Bev soon added the sale of bicycles. Bev was an adventuress and entrepreneur.
Around the year 2000, Beverly continued to volunteer at improving our schools and joined up with Ted Sizer. Ted had founded the “Coalition for Essential Schools,” which advocated Nine Principles to upgrade public education. Bev was assigned to organize the coalition in the state of Rhode Island, and delighted in this assignment.
A man named Ed Colbert had lost his wife of 52 years and was seeking a new partner. Ed contacted a golfing friend Tony Anthony, in Peterborough, New Hampshire and asked for an introduction to KC. Tony replied that KC was happily engaged, That was that!!!! But, a couple of weeks later Tony called back to tell Ed about a woman in Boston whom Ed would like to meet. It took four weeks of telephone tag before Ed showed up at 50 Commonwealth Ave. with an armful of beautiful flowers.
Like Bev, Ed had started his own wood stoves called Energy Harvesters. They had so much in common, not only the stove businesses, but Ed, like the coalition, had engaged with the schools of Brockton and Lowell. Ed’s Company, Data Instruments Inc., enrolled 30 technology companies, to assign one or two of their own engineers to teach one day per week at the public middle schools. The objective was to encourage students to enjoy science, and choose science as a major in high school.
Beverly had an ideal home in Boston at the corner of Berkeley Street and Commonwealth Avenue. Tony had told Ed she played Golf at Tedesco Country Club. On their first date she took him to Legal Seafood and then strolled with Ed to the Esplanade, whereupon Ed stated that was even a short walk. Bev took off, marching her way towards the Mass Avenue Bridge, at rapid pace, then across to MIT, east to the Salt and Pepper Ridge the back to the Esplanade. ATHLETIC, ENERGETIC !!!!!!!
Bev loved to travel, and she was the prime mover to visit: France, Netherlands, Belgium, Spain, Switzerland, Czechoslovakia, Germany, Croatia, Norway and Russia where they floated up the Volga River from Moscow to St. Petersburg, ending in Helsinki, Finland.
Bev and Ed had beautiful homes in Boston and Concord. After four years of commuting to Boston/Concord, they decided they could live together and chose Marblehead where Bev raised her children and still had so many wonderful friends. Now Beverly has passed on from wonderful Marblehead and nearly 19 happy years with Ed!
