Helen M. Laird

Helen M. (O’Connor) Laird, R.N., 90, a resident of the Christian Hill neighborhood in the Centralville section of Lowell, died Friday March 18, 2011. She was the wife of the late Leo Robert “Bob” Laird who died on November 11, 2004.
Born in Lowell on December 31, 1920, she was a daughter of the late Thomas F. and Delia (Molloy) O’Connor.
During World War II, Helen served with the United States Navy Nurse Corps., earning the rank of Ensign.
She was employed by the City of Lowell Health Department as a school nurse for the five public schools located in the Acre section of the City. She retired following 36 years of dedicated service. She was a member of the Catholic Nurses of Merrimack Valley.
A long time communicant of St. Michael Church, she was active in the Parish Community as a Lector, Eucharistic Minister and C.C.D. Teacher. She was also the past president of the Holy Rosary Sodality and a member of the St. Dominic Club and Poor Clare Guild.
Helen was a member of the Parish St. Vincent de Paul Society and was instrumental in the operation of the Parish Thrift Store.
She is survived by a son, Thomas Laird and his wife, Nancy (Dexter) Laird of Lowell; two daughters, Mary M. Callery of Lowell and Jayne M. Hoffman and her husband, Scott R. Hoffman of Dracut; eight grandchildren, Thomas Laird, Jr. of Lowell, Rev. Michael J. Laird and his wife Laura (Corcoran) Laird of Elmhurst, IL, Kelly A. Cormier and her husband Raymond Cormier of Lowell, Scott R. Hoffman of Dracut, Catherine D. Callery, Sean P. Callery, Timothy S. Callery and Conor M. Callery, all of Lowell, and their father, Michael J. Callery of Lowell; six great grandchildren, Sam, Ben, Phoebe and Myriam Laird and Rowan and Gracie Cormier; three brothers-in-law and two sisters-in-law, Raymond Burns of Chelmsford, John “Jackie” and Lorraine Laird of Dracut and Esther and Daniel Degan of Lowell; also many nieces and nephews. She was the mother of the late Robert G. “Bobby” Laird, and sister of the late Thomas O’Connor, Francis O’Connor, Mary Gervais, Margaret Rock, Kathleen Cormier and her twin sister, Agnes Burns.