Elizabeth Anne Conlon

Laconia

Elizabeth Anne (Carey) Conlon

Elizabeth A. Conlon, 83, a longtime resident of Laconia, passed away on Thursday, February 15, 2024, at the Granite VNA Hospice House in Concord, following a short illness. She was born in Brockton, MA on November 25, 1940, the daughter of the late Philip T. and Claire A. (Sewall) Carey.
Elizabeth was a current resident of the Meredith Bay Colony Club in Meredith and was very happy during her years there. She was well known for her work at the Wild Bird Depot in Gilford where she worked for many years. As much as she loved to work there, her true heart was being able to spend time with her family, especially her grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and her 80+ nieces and nephews. Elizabeth was an avid doll collector, an amazing artist, and she held some of the best tea parties with her grandchildren serving her special "magic tea" in her beautiful tea cups that she also collected. She was a firm believer that a child’s imagination is truly a powerful tool, and she demonstrated this in the children’s books she wrote and illustrated showing the wonders and creativity of a child’s mind. Elizabeth will also be remembered by many for her part in planning and organizing the annual Carey Family Christmas Party at Leavitt Park where over 100 members of the Carey family gathered every year to celebrate the holiday, exchange gifts, and enjoy Elizabeth’s beautiful hand-painted Christmas cookies. Birdwatching was also a favorite pastime of Elizabeth's and she had a fondness for cardinals believing they represented devotion, love, and loyalty. As such, many of her paintings included Northern cardinals. Some of Elizabeth’s other passions included cheering on her favorite team, the Boston Red Sox, spending time with her two best friends, Judy and Cheryl, and as the second oldest of 11, she always cherished the moments spent with her siblings. Elizabeth was a kind and loving soul and during her lifetime she was a foster parent to over 15 children.
She was predeceased by her parents, her husband, Thomas J. Conlon, a brother, Philip Carey Jr., and a daughter, Kelly Finemore.
Her family includes her six children: son-in-law Kent Finemore and his children Calvin and his wife Christina Finemore, and Ghillian-Kate and her husband Dan McCall; daughter, Maureen DeRoy and her husband William and their children Kaitlyn and her husband Kenneth Gardner, and Ryan DeRoy; daughter, Sharon Spanos and her husband Peter and their children, Sofia Spanos and Carey John Spanos; daughter, Anne Rees and her husband Bryan and their children, Garrett Stecher, Hunter Rees, Kailey Rees, and Sawyer Rees; son, Joseph Conlon and his wife Heidi and their children, Emma Conlon and Liam Conlon; daughter, Susanne Conlon; and her great-grandchildren; Enna Rees and Lily Finemore. She is also survived by her nine siblings: Patricia Guilmette, Gretchen Stucchi and her husband Anthony, Cynthia LaFond, Martha Aucoin and her husband Richard, Theresa Manson and her husband Jeffrey, Christine Nagy, David Carey and his wife Tina, Mary McCormack and her husband Wayne, and Marcella Harris and her husband Edward, and many nieces and nephews.
Calling hours will be held on Thursday, February 22, 2024, from 5:00 PM to 7:00 PM at the Smart Memorial Home, 584 West Main St., Tilton. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Friday, February 23, 2024, at 10:00 AM at St. Joseph Parish, 96 Main St., Belmont. The burial will follow the mass at 12 noon at the New Hampshire State Veterans Cemetery, 110 Daniel Webster Highway, Boscawen.
The family requests that donations be made to the Hall Memorial Library, Children’s Department, 18 Park St., Northfield, NH, in memory of her daughter Kelly who was the children’s librarian there for many years.