ORONO – Beverly A. (Johnson) Styrna, 78, of Orono and Naples, Fla., died Nov. 6, 2006, after a three-year battle with cancer. Beverly was well known in Orono for serving as the town and school nurse from 1969 until 1980, and then as the full-time town nurse until 1991. Beverly was known for her dedication to the people of Orono and for her witty wisecracks. She made calls to perhaps hundreds of houses in Orono, where she gave baths, tested blood sugar, and generally checked in on the well being of her fellow town residents. She thoroughly enjoyed her job and her patients, and people recognized her all over town. She also loved a practical joke, and for years was known to plant plastic flamingos in the yards of neighbors while they visited Florida. Many former Asa Adams students remember Beverly as the school nurse who took their temperature by kissing their foreheads – a method that she knew wouldn’t be politically correct today. Beverly was a lifetime republican who served on the Orono Town Council from 1992 to 1998. She also actively campaigned for Sen. Susan Collins. In recent years, Beverly and her husband, Edmund, spent their winters in Naples, Fla., where they enjoyed playing golf, trips to the beach and socializing with friends and neighbors. Beverly was born in Nashua, N.H., and educated at Nashua High School and Mary Hitchcock Memorial Hospital. In the early 1950s, she worked as a registered nurse at Mary Hitchcock Clinic Group Practice. She moved to Maine with her family in 1956 and worked at St. Joseph Hospital, Bangor from 1957 to 1963. She worked for Dr. William Deighan, an oral surgeon through 1967 and then at the emergency room at Eastern Maine Medical Center until 1969, when she became a town and school nurse. At various points during her life, Beverly was active in the Orono-Old Town YMCA, served on the board of the Eastern Maine Health Care Auxiliary and volunteered for the Good Samaritan Home, the Thursday Club, and the Woman’s Club. She was active in the Church of Universal Fellowship, Orono, and the Mayflower Church of Christ, Naples, Fla. She also received the National Award from Grange Community Services and an award for community service from the Kiwanis. Her hobbies included needlework, cooking and golf. Beverly is survived by her husband, Edmund of Orono; daughters, Sandra Griffin of Las Vegas and Susan Boyce of Westbrook; five grandchildren; and sister, Shirley Lewis of Lakeland, Fla. Friends may call 5-7 p.m. Thursday, Nov. 9, at the Gathering Place, Church of Universal Fellowship, Orono. Memorial services will be held 1 p.m. Friday, Nov. 10, at the Church of Universal Fellowship, Orono, with the Rev. Lorna Stuart, pastor and the Rev. Dr. Roger Plummer officiating. There will be a reception in the church vestry immediately after the service. Those who wish may make contributions in Beverly’s memory to the Orono Fire Department, P.O. Box 130, Orono, ME 04473. Condolences to the family may be expressed at www.BrookingsSmith.com
BEVERLY A. STYRNA
