Ellen Clifford McGuire, 73, of East Longmeadow, MA, died peacefully at home on Wednesday, June 8, 2022, surrounded by her loving family.
Born in Holyoke and raised in South Hadley, Ellen was the only child of John Clifford and Mary Long Clifford. After her father’s death in 1961, Ellen and her mother lived with her aunt and uncle, Margaret and Arthur Higgins, and their daughters, Carol and Margaret. While attending the Northampton School for Girls, Ellen lived with her beloved aunt and uncle, Helen and Pat Padden. Ellen earned her bachelor’s degree from Newton College of the Sacred Heart and a master’s degree in education from American International College.
A lifelong educator, Ellen began her teaching career at Blessed Sacrament in Holyoke. Ellen would later teach at Peck Middle School also in Holyoke, and spent decades as a children’s reading tutor, a role she truly relished.
Speaking of relish, you may know Ellen from her popular food column, The Readers Exchange, which she first edited and then authored in this paper from 1988 until the column’s retirement in 2020. Ellen was a talented writer and self-taught cook, and The Readers Exchange proved the perfect forum to share both of those gifts as well as her love for the community, as the recipes she highlighted were often requested and/or submitted by readers. She also authored two cookbooks. Her columns and featured recipes were approachable, and, well before the emergence of today’s cooking blog, imbued with entertaining and honest personal anecdotes. The Reader’s Exchange may live on eternally thanks to the power of the internet, and Ellen’s family encourages you to try summertime favorite, cold soup, or perhaps J.P. McMahon’s Irish beef stew.
Ellen wore many hats, and she wore them all well. In addition to teaching, she worked as a real estate agent for nearly three decades. Based in Longmeadow, where Ellen settled to raise her daughters, she was often seen driving to a house showing with her beloved poodle in the front seat. Ellen loved the role she played helping families find their home and community. Countless relationships that began as generic “fellow agent,” “buyer,” or “seller” acquaintances evolved into deep and long-lasting friendships that continue today.
While real estate, teaching, and writing all kept Ellen busy, her top priority and true source of light and love was her family and her friends. Ellen leaves behind her loving husband, Dr. Arthur T. McGuire. Ellen and Art married in 2003 and shared an intellect and sense of humor and an enthusiasm for new ventures, including international travel, Italian lessons, and ballroom dancing.
Ellen is survived by her two daughters, Molly Kenney and her partner Joseph O’Brien IV of Brookline and Longmeadow, and Bevin Kenney and her husband Scott Davidson of Jamaica Plain, and their two children, Neve and Desmond Davidson, adoring fans of their “Nani.” Through her very nature, Ellen impressed upon her girls the truly important things in life, beginning with kindness, humor, love, and acceptance, including of oneself. Ellen and her girls were and will forever be a unit, a package deal.
She leaves behind four stepsons, Timothy, John, Mike (Amanda), and Matthew (Kara) McGuire, as well as 11 McGuire grandchildren: Maggie, Frank, Maureen, Justin, Elizabeth, Mabel, Joe, Ellen, and Charlotte, Ted, Gus, all of whom Ellen adored. She will be dearly missed by a vast community of friends and family.
The family would like to thank her care teams at Baystate Medical and Kind Hands, both of which provided exceptional care and support. Calling hours for Ellen will be Tuesday, June 14th from 4-7PM at Forastiere Smith Funeral Home, 220 N. Main St., East Longmeadow. A Liturgy of Christian Burial will be held on Wednesday, June 15th at 10:30AM at St. Michael’s Church, 128 Maple St., East Longmeadow. The family appreciates if masks can be worn. Interment will follow in Gate of Heaven Cemetery, Springfield. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Michael Steingart Endowment or D’amour Center for Cancer Care, both at Baystate Health Foundation, 280 Chestnut Street, Springfield, MA, 01199.