Obituary of Carolyn Roberta Friberg

Carolyn Roberta Friberg passed unexpectedly but peacefully on Sunday, February 7, 2021 at her home in Monson, Massachusetts. She was born on December 2, 1943 in Ware, Massachusetts, to Ida (Potter) Shaffer and Robert Welch. She spent her early childhood in Warren and her teenage years in Stafford, Connecticut, in the beautiful countryside just adjacent to Monson. She graduated from Stafford High School and married a few years later. After marriage, she and her family settled in Monson, where she lived all the rest of her life.

Carolyn—Carol to friends, Roberta to family—was artistically talented, expressing her gifts in tole painting, basketmaking, and floral design. She taught basket weaving to senior groups in Monson and created lovely arrangements during her years of work as a floral designer. In addition to artistic talent, she had so much comic talent that she could make everyone laugh even in the direst situations. She was compassionate when confronted with suffering and supportive and encouraging when times were rough. She was a devoted mother with a special bond to her daughter, Cynthia. And she possessed a very rare quality: Throughout her life she managed, somehow, to retain the innocence of childhood.

Carolyn’s husband, Ernest Friberg, and their daughter, Cynthia Friberg, both predeceased her. Two brothers, George and Floyd Welch, also predeceased her. Carolyn leaves another brother, James Lundell, and his wife, Diane, of Stratham, New Hampshire; a sister, Gail Lundell, of Carmichael, California; and a stepbrother, Walter Shaffer, of Leesburg, Florida. She also leaves her daughter’s fiancé, Walter Hill, Jr., of Ludlow, Massachusetts, and his family, as well as several nieces, nephews, cousins, friends, and neighbors. All will miss her presence.

A private graveside service will be held at noon on Wednesday, February 17th at Hillcrest Park Cemetery, 895 Parker Street, Springfield, Massachusetts. For those who cannot attend, the service will be livestreamed at https://client.tribucast.com/tcid/97215285

Donations may be made in memory of Carolyn to the American Cancer Society.