Janet Lee Tapply Charron

Janet Lee (Pearson) Tapply Charron, age 93 of Merrimack, NH, (formerly of Lunenburg, MA, Amherst, NH and Huntsville, TX), passed away on March 17, 2024. She was born on June 30, 1930 in Fitchburg, Massachusetts to the late Richard Stanley Pearson, Sr. and Madeline Winsor (Brown) Pearson. She was one of twelve children. She graduated from Fitchburg High School, Fitchburg, MA in 1948 with high honors. She attended Burbank Hospital School of Nursing, also graduating with honors. In 1972 she attended Massachusetts General Hospital’s initial Family Nurse Practitioner Program which was taught by Harvard Medical School. She became a nurse practitioner for Dr. Robert Babineau, Sr and his son Dr. Robert Babineau, Jr. at Fitchburg Family Practice. She was one of the pioneers in establishing family nurse practitioners as independent health care providers. She loved her work and the patients were uppermost in her service to them. Janet had a deep love for her family. She grew up in a large family during the depression. While life was not always easy, “there was always room for one more at the table.” She loved cooking and sharing meals with family and friends. She had a green thumb. She had large vegetable gardens and canned and froze her bounty. She grew plants of all kinds indoors, propagated African violets and cactus. She would place her cactus outdoors under a shady tree during the Spring and Summer and bring them indoors in the Fall and Winter for a spectacular display. She was a very dedicated Christian and spent many years active in her church, Christ Church, Fitchburg, MA. She was an active member singing in the choir, on the Vestry, was a choir mother, taught Sunday school and was a member of the Women’s Evening Guild. In retirement, Janet and Ray traveled extensively across the country in their RV. They hunted in West Texas and fished for bass in Lake Livingston and salmon in Alaska. They also loved taking cruises to Alaska and the Caribbean. Janet is survived by two sisters; Nancy A. Smith of Parkland, FL and Joan C. Williamson of Wolfeboro, NH, two sons Jon K. Tapply and his wife Rhonda E. Tapply of Merrimack, NH and Douglas S. Tapply and his wife Cheryl Tapply of Penacook, NH and one daughter Gretchen L. Newton of Fitchburg, MA. She is survived by eleven grandchildren: Peter R. Newton, Kevin J. Newton, Erica M. Austin, Matthew L. Tapply, Michael J. Tapply, Lucas D. Tapply, Rachel H. Jones, James R. Osborne, Roger A. Veilleux, Michaela K. J. Scherer, Jack C. P. Higginbottom, sixteen great-grandchildren and many nieces and nephews. Janet is predeceased by her husband Raymond A. Charron, her first husband Robert S. Tapply, her parents Richard Stanley and Madeline Winsor (Brown) Pearson, five brothers: Dr. Robert B. Pearson, Richard S. Pearson, Jr., Wallace S. Pearson, Deacon Hedley A. Pearson and Philip E. Pearson and four sisters June W. Brigham, Ruth E. Lakso, Barbara L. Hersey and Grace M. Pearson. She is also predeceased by her daughter Rebecca J. Scherer, two grandsons Jonathan P. Newton and Michael D. Tapply and her granddaughter Sarah M. Tapply. A funeral service will be held at Christ Church, Fitchburg, MA on Monday, March 25, 2024 at 11AM. Burial will be at Forest Hill Cemetery, Fitchburg, MA. A calling hour will be held prior to the service on Monday morning at the church in the Bennet Room. I n lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made to ALSAC/St. Jude’s Children’s Research Hospital, 501 St. Jude Place, Memphis, TN 38105. As a nurse practitioner, Janet made donations to St. Jude’s throughout her life to better the lives of others.

Tributes

Janet Lee Tapply Charron

June 30, 1930 - March 17, 2024