Obituaries

Our beloved sister, aunt, cousin, and friend, Lori Powers, passed away on October 18 at the tender age of 60.

Lori was born on December 5, 1962 in Boston to Ambrose and Daphne (McConnnell) Powers – the middle daughter between sisters Carol and Kathy. Lori grew up in West Quincy, attending St. Mary’s Grammar School and then Fontbonne Academy. Lori graduated from the University of Lowell. It was in school where Lori met fellow students who would become lifelong friends. Some of these friends would describe Lori as the “well-behaved friend” – the responsible one who made sure that everyone got home safely after adventurous nights out.

Lori was a strong individual who was always looking on the positive side of things and often doing for others rather than for herself. Her family and friends meant everything to her. She was happy in flip-flops and shorts over “big girl” shoes and fancy clothes. This said, she loved a good reason to get all dressed up. Lori particularly loved a good sunset and looked forward to seeing as many as she could and if she could share that with moment someone all the better. The beach and water were her go-to places. The family cottage on White Island Pond in Wareham meant the world to her and was her fortress. A fire in the fireplace or fire pit and a cocktail or glass of Veuve Clicquot were bliss. Hot cocoa in winter or iced coffee on really any day of the year didn’t hurt either. Lori loved to both travel and to plan her travel, and she was always grateful when she saw the sun set in new and beautiful places.

Lori also had a strong yet quiet philanthropic side. For years, she honored our departed veterans by placing flags during the Summer and hand-crafted wreaths during the Winter on veterans’ graves. Lori volunteered her time at local food pantries and otherwise donated to people, animals, and organizations close to her heart.

Lori’s sense of humor and powers of observation were second to none. No one could tell a story of disaster better than Lori, as once she was done weaving her tale her audience had forgotten the unfortunate circumstances behind the story. Outside of these scenarios of misfortune, Lori frequently broke us up sharing the more mundane parts of her day. We were always entertained.

After college, Lori worked in the finance and banking industries. In December of 2000, she embarked on a 23-year career at Massachusetts General Hospital where she most notably worked as the Operations Manager in the Cardiac units. In this role, Lori made sure that everything got done, working tirelessly to ensure that patients and their families got what they needed and that staff were able to go home to their families at night. This included but was not limited to working through several blizzards, arranging weddings for patients, and strapping on her tool belt when the unit needed to be converted in order to accommodate patient requests or needs. For the last 8 years of her career, Lori worked as a trainer with the hospital’s Epic team, training literally thousands of students how to use MGH’s electronic medical record system. Lori’s students adored her and routinely stopped her in the hallway to say hi, or called her months and sometimes years after their classes to ask her an Epic question. Lori treasured these connections.

In August of 2022, Lori was diagnosed with esophageal cancer. We are not completely convinced that she would want to be described with any of the adjectives one might normally hear about people living with cancer. Instead, we will say that Lori continued to live her life to the fullest and that she stayed true to who she was throughout. We do know that Lori was incredibly grateful to her team of caregivers – both personal and professional – and this will be reflected below.

Lori is survived by her wonderful sisters, Kathy Melchin, and Carol Broccoli; their spouses Bill and Tony; and her nephews Mark and Matthew. Lori also leaves her beloved cousin Ken and his spouse Beverly.

There will be visiting hours for Lori on Thursday, October 26 from 4PM to 7PM with a prayer service to follow at the Dennis Sweeney Funeral Home on Elm Street in Quincy: https://dennissweeneyonelm.com . Burial will be private.

In lieu of flowers, gifts in Lori’s memory may be made to the Massachusetts General Hospital in support of esophageal cancer research. You may make this gift online at giving.massgeneral.org, where you can select “Make a Tribute” or you may mail a gift to Meagan Coons c/o the MGH Development Office, 125 Nashua Street, Suite 540, Boston, MA 02114. Please note “Gastric/Esophageal Cancer Research in honor of Dr. Klempner” in the memo line. Thank you for your consideration.