Greenfield, Mass – Emelda Rose (Labrie) Luippold, 96, of Meridian Street died Wednesday 5/23/18 at the Buckley Health Care Center in Greenfield. Born in Wellington, Prince Edward Island, Canada on July 7, 1921 to Alexis and Marie (Arsenault) Labrie, Emelda grew up in Athol along with her 7 siblings. Upon graduation from Athol High School, she soon met and married her husband Jim and the young couple began their life together in Greenfield raising four boys: Jim, Paul, Bill and Tom.
Melda, as her friends called her, loved being active around town. She worked as a clerk in the Collector’s Office for the Town of Greenfield for over forty years. She served the Franklin County Baseball Association as treasurer for many years and was a long time communicant of Holy Trinity Church.
She also hosted the Lou-Mel Women’s Talk Variety Show on WHAI in the 1970’s and waitressed at Alwin and Olga’s Restaurant for more than 15 years. Melda reveled in her role as a homemaker. She became especially talented in many respects – from baking up a batch of her prized Gingersnap cookies (which she gave to every member of her extended family as a Christmas gift) to gardening, producing the finest blueberries for her family and friends.
Her blueberry pies were always a hit. Everything she did was done with love. She loved crafting and crocheting and always gave them as gifts.
For years, she quietly donated to the St. Jude’s Hospital for Children and collected tabs from soda cans to raise money for the Shriners Burn Center. People from as far away as California would save tabs for her and send them in the mail. She also began the tradition of collecting pennies for each grandchild or great grandchild for the year they were born.
Melda always said she found good luck in the number 7. She knew she had a good hand when she got a 7 while playing cards. She and her sister, Yvonne, shared the same birthday 7/7.
The luck of 7’s continued with 7 grandchildren and 7 great grandchildren. Melda was happiest when she was surrounded by her family and friends – whether at the cottage at Packard Heights Lake in Orange or at her home in Greenfield. Melda was predeceased by her husband of 65 years, James F. Luippold and her brothers, Edgar, Paul, Romeo and Zenon Labrie and Kristin Luippold’s fiancé Robert Eaton.
She leaves behind her three beloved siblings, Bernadette Chaisson, Yvonne Bryant and Joe Labrie; her four sons, Jim of Belchertown, Paul and his wife Donna, Bill and his wife Debbie, and Tom and his wife Ann Luippold; her seven grandchildren, Dan Luippold, Katie Perdomo and her husband Ivan, Carrie Luippold, Kristin Luippold, Ben Luippold and his wife Fran, Jenna Luippold and her fiancé Chris Deszynski and Kevin Luippold; seven great grandchildren, Diego and Gabriella Perdomo, Taela, Shylan and Zoelle Emelda Luippold, Anabelle and Caroline Luippold; and many nieces, nephews and cousins. Visitation will be held Tuesday morning from 8:30-9:30am at the Kostanski Funeral Home, 220 Federal Street, Greenfield followed by a Liturgy of Christian Burial at 10am at Holy Trinity Church, 133 Main Street, Greenfield. Burial will follow at the Calvary Cemetery in Greenfield.
Calling hours will be held on Monday, May 28th from 5 to 7 p.m. at the funeral home. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to St. Jude’s Tribute Program, P.O. Box 1000, Dept. 142, Memphis, TN 38148-0142, the Shriners Hospital for Children, 51 Blossom Street, Boston, MA 02114 or The American Cancer Society (cancer.org).
For sympathy messages, please visit www. kostanskifuneralhome.com.
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