Regina G. Armstrong

Regina Gross-Armstrong of Scarborough, Maine passed away peacefully in her home with her daughter by her side on February 9th, 2016. She was a gentle spirit, and a devoted Mother with a compassionateheart. She was 90 years old. Reginas parents were the late Joseph and Frances Dwyer of Dorchester, MA. She is predeceased by her two brothers, Joseph and William Dwyer and sister, Ethel Hamilton. She is survived by her beloved four children: daughter, Regina-Marie Gross (Westwood, MA), her sons: Gerald Gross (Lincoln, MA), Paul Gross (Boston, MA) and Robert Gross (Gray, Maine). She will be remembered by her four grandchildren, two great-grandchildren, extended family, friends and her dear, lifelong friend, Charles (Bud) Thompson of Warner, NH. Regina had a magnificent operatic soprano voice and loved Opera. Each year, she would attend the Metropolitan Opera at Lincoln Center. In 1989, she went to the Vienna State Opera and she attended several live performances of Luciano Pavarotti. She was a member of the American Church Organist Guild. Oftentimes, she would sing operatic duets with her nephew, Joe Dwyer Jr. She enjoyed horseback riding, skiing, playing the piano, pipe organ, teaching and singing. An animal lover, she had several dogs. Her most recent dog was her late St. Bernard, Clover . But her greatest love was her four children. She called them her four jewels. Regina was born and grew up in Dorchester, MA during the Depression and World War II. In 1934 to 1942, Regina studied private voice and piano lessons. Oftentimes, she sang in the Boston area Church Choirs and gave piano lessons. In 1942, after graduating from Jeremiah Burke High School in Dorchester, she received a Scholarship to the prestigious New England Conservatory of Music. In 1943, she was hired as the first woman and youngest Church Organist at St. Kevins Church in Dorchester. From 1943 to 1962, she worked part-time at the Boston Music Company in Boston. In 1945, Regina Graduated from the New England Conservatory of Music with a degree in Piano and Voice. In the late 1940s, she was invited to join the Dolly Carte Opera Company, but chose to have a family. After studying musical therapy, in 1945, she became a part-time Musical Therapist at the Good Samaritan Hospital in Boston. In 1951, she married and settled in Waltham, MA. While raising her four children, she worked part time at the Boston Music Company transcribing music. In 1960, she was the Choir Director for the Waltham Boys Club. In 1962, her 7 year old son was diagnosed with congenital heart disease and required open-heart surgery. She brought her son to the eminent Dr. Robert Gross, at Boston Childrens Hospital. The operation was successful and as a devoted Mother, she nursed her son back to health. To put her four children through college, in 1966, she received her Real Estate Brokers License and established her Real Estate Office in her kitchen, called Quality Homes Real Estate. In 1967, she became the first Woman Realtor in Waltham, MA. She was so successful, local male Realtors took up a petition to prevent her from selling real estate from her kitchen. Always the optimist and inventor of her own success, in 1970, she was hired at Century 21 in Watertown, Mass. A few years later, she was the first woman broker awarded the Million Dollar Real Estate Sales Club Award of Century 21 in Watertown, MA. Finally in 1974, she bought her dream house in Scarborough, Maine. In 1978, she was the first woman to manage the Century 21 Office in Waltham, MA. She managed the office until she moved to Scarborough, Maine in 1983. As an Entrepreneur, in 1984, she owned and operated the 1750 Colonial House Restaurant in Scarborough. After she sold the restaurant in 1989, she returned to her profession as a Church Organist. From 1984 to 1990, she was a part-time Church Organist while teaching piano and voice lessons privately in her home. From 1991 to 2004, Father Coleman OToole hired Regina as the Church Organist and Choir Director for St. Patricks Church in Portland, Maine. When she was 74, Father O-Toole asked her to be the Music Teacher and Choir Director for St. Patricks School. She enjoyed directing the Schools Musical Recitals. In addition, from 2002 to 2008, she was a part-time music teacher at the Fiddleheads School in Scarborough. As a music teacher, several Portland area music students were inspired by her vast knowledge of music and her patient teaching style. In 2004 to 2005, she was the Church Organist at St. Annes Church in Gorham Maine. In 2012 at the age of 88, the MusicLinks Foundation (an organization that offers music lessons to talented students) invited her to represent the State of Maine. She continued to give private piano lessons until her passing in 2016. Reginas talent and conscientious energy contributed to her being the first woman to pioneer her professional pursuits in music, real estate and as an entrepreneur. Many people were comforted by her compassionate understanding and unselfish generous spirit. Whether it was her own family or strangers, she always took time to care for someone less fortunate. She is one person who lived by the phrase, Do unto others as you would have done unto you. As a devoted Mother, she inspired and blessed each of her four children with her protective, guiding and loving heart. Her children will deeply miss their beloved Mother, but know that their Mother will watch over them through their lifes journey. Visiting hours will be held on Sunday, February 14, 2016 from 2:00 to 5:00pm at the Conroy-Tully Crawford Funeral Home, 172 State Street, Portland, ME. Prayers will be recited at the funeral home on Monday, Febuary, 15, 2016 at 9:15am followed by an 10:00am Mass of Christian Burial at St. Maximilian Kolbe Church, 150 Black Point Rd, Scarborough, Me. A Memorial Celebration of her life will be announced in the summer. To view Reginas memorial page, or to share an online condolence, please visit www.ctcrawford.com If you would like to make a Donation to the Regina Armstrong Music Education Fund, you may contact Regina Gross at email: reginagross23@yahoo.com. The funds will be donated to a promising music student in a local school.