Loved reading, her garden and the sun on Long Beach
NORTH ANDOVER — Barbara A. (Bommer) Tufts, 95, of North Andover and formerly of Wakefield, North Reading and Medford, died at Brightview Assisted Living in North Andover on February 18, 2025.
Born in Medford on March 16, 1929, she was the daughter of the late Arno M. and Marian (Morse) Bommer. She was raised and attended school in Medford and was a graduate of Tufts University in Medford where she earned a B.A. in History and Education. Barbara was a teacher for the Medford School System; she taught at the Hobbs Junior High School and she was a Customer Sales Representative for the Revere Federal Savings and Loan.
She was a member of the Revere Chamber of Commerce, the Lynnfield School Committee, Girls Scouts of America Council, Long Beach Association and various committees at the Union Congregational Church in North Reading, especially the Christmas Fair.
Barbara was devoted to her family and was always a phone call away for anyone that needed her. She had a huge circle of friends in Lynnfield, North Reading, Wakefield and her beloved summer beach home on Long Beach in Rockport.
One of Barbara’s passions was reading. Quoting Barbara: “If you can read you can do anything.” She belonged to several book clubs and was an avid participant. Besides reading, she loved working in the garden with her flowers. She enjoyed sitting in the sun on Long Beach in Rockport. Barbara loved watching movies especially ones with her favorite actor, John Wayne. In her earlier days, she loved aerobic dancing and jogging.
She was the beloved wife of the late William Tufts, Jr. Family members include her loving sons, William Tufts, III and his wife Cynthia of Center Tuftonboro, N.H. and the late Robert Tufts; her daughter Sandra (Tufts) Fullerton and her husband Patrick of Bradford; six grandchildren, Ashley Perron of Pittsfield, N.H.; Patrick Fullerton, Jr. of Winthrop; Abigail Tufts of New York City, N.Y.; Elizabeth Young of North Andover; Mary Fullerton of Bradford; and the late Heather Tufts. Two great-grandchildren, Mckinley Perron and Charles Perron, both of Pittsfield, N.H.; and daughter-in-law Suzanne Tufts of Forrest Hills, N.Y., also survive her.
A memorial service will be held on Saturday, April 12 at 11 a.m. at the Union Congregational Church, 148 Haverhill St., North Reading. A collation will immediately follow the service in the church hall. In lieu of flowers memorial donations may be made in her memory to the Parkinson’s Foundation at www.parkinson.org. Arrangements by the Croswell Funeral Home, 19 Bow St., North Reading. To leave an online message of condolence visit croswellfuneralhome.com.