Etelvina “Tillie” (Souza) Laverdiere, age 97 of Yarmouthport, passed away on November 5, 2024 after a long and full life. She was born in Holyoke, daughter of the late Antonio and Rose (Neves) Souza, and was a graduate of the former Holy Rosary High School in Holyoke. Tillie was employed for more than 20 years as a timekeeper for the National Blank Book Company (Avery Dennison), retiring in the mid 1990’s. Despite retirement Tillie remained active in both her church and local communities volunteering her time and energy to many local organizations. Tillie loved to travel with her friends and had an extensive collection of magnets from her many adventures (which the grandkids loved to play with while she shared stories of the places she visits). She was a voracious reader, knitter and a couch Jeopardy champ. Tillie loved basketball and avidly followed the Celtics, her “boys” at UMass and the UConn women’s team. She was an incredible cook and cared for her family through her love language of food. Later in life it was discovered that she was also an incredibly gifted artist when she took up painting in her 90s. Tillie was a strong, independent and feisty woman with a generous heart and a quick wit, that often took people by surprise. She believed in the good of people and always hoped for peace for those she knew and her community as a whole.

Tillie was predeceased by the love of her life, husband Rene G. J. Laverdiere in 1987. She is survived by her three children: Louise (Robert Westfall), Linda (Frank Gregoire) and Jeffrey (Jackie Laverdiere); 5 grandchildren: Timothy Westfall (Sharon), Rhian Anthony (Micquie), Ashley Granger (Michael), Chad Laverdiere and Mason Gregoire (Mariah), as well as 5 great grandchildren: Alli, Sidney, Garret, Éowyn and Zora, not to mention the countless people that referred to her as Vava as she was a surrogate grandmother to everyone she met who happened to be just a bit younger than her. Tillie always said that she was simple woman who lived a simple life, but there was nothing simple about the way she loved her family. She is greatly missed by all who knew and loved her and truly that list is endless.

Relatives and friends are invited to attend a Mass of Christian Burial on Tuesday, June 17, 2025, at 11:00 am in Saint Patrick Church, 30 Main Street. Prior to the Mass, a calling hour will be held in the church beginning at 10:00 am. Burial will follow in Saint Rose Cemetery, both in South Hadley. The Barry J. Farrell Funeral Home is handling arrangements. The family has requested that remembrances be made in the form of contributions to the Providence Place Legacy Fund https://www.providenceplace.org/more-information/legacy-fund/ or the South Hadley Council on Aging https://southhadley.org/586/Support-the-COA.