Mary Ellen Balasalle, 76, surrounded by her husband and children, passed onto her next great adventure on January 30th. She spent her last days listening to replays of her cherished Red Sox’ 2004 World Series win, the Boston Pops’ rendition of the Nutcracker, and the laughter of her loved ones as they retold family stories.

Mary Ellen was born on December 17, 1946 to Mary and Edward Russell. She was a proud big sister to her siblings Joan and Edward. She graduated from St. Gregory’s High School and Boston State College. She always loved learning and from a young age knew she wanted to be a teacher. She spent thirty four years as a math and English teacher in the Boston Public School system, with the last fifteen years before her retirement spent at the Lewis Middle School. She was passionate about education and was very committed to her students, receiving a Golden Apple Award for excellence in teaching.

Mary Ellen grew up and raised her family in the same house that she adored in Dorchester Lower Mills. She met Stratty in April of 1970 and by all accounts, it was love at first sight. They married on June 25, 1972, and the wedding is still talked about today. James came along in 1978 and Julie in 1983. She fiercely loved her children and supported them through all of their activities growing up, while also caring for her own beloved mother, Mary. She was incredibly proud of her children and was their biggest cheerleader.

She loved nothing more than to tend to her beautiful garden and spend time bird watching with Stratty on the bike path. She loved the outdoors, especially the ocean, and instilled that love in her children, especially through a cross country road trip visiting National Parks. The light of her life was her granddaughter Ella who has inherited her Nana's love of birds and will still make sure to fill the bird feeders for Nana.

Anytime between April and (hopefully October) during game time, you could hear her loudly voicing her love (or frustration) for the Red Sox. She was famous for her date and nut bread recipe and would tell everyone to try fried Halloumi cheese on watermelon. She was a voracious reader and passed on a love of reading to her children. She finished the crossword and sudoku puzzles in the Boston Globe everyday while sipping her Dunkin Donuts coffee. She relished in the simple things and was a kind and beautiful soul. Her heartwarming laugh and smile will be greatly missed.

She is survived by her devoted husband of 50 years, Charles “Stratty'' Balasalle, loving son James Balasalle (Aileen) of Colorado, loving daughter Julie Balasalle (Ian) of Nova Scotia, granddaughter Ella Balasalle of Colorado, brother Edward Russell (Noelle) of Hingham, and special cousin Patricia Hennigan of Milton. She had a wonderful extended family and many friends and neighbors that will also miss her greatly.

She is predeceased by her parents, Mary and Edward Russell, sister Joan Murdock, nephew Scott Murdock, and her mother and father in law, Lillian and Michael Balasalle. She also is now with her beloved four legged friends, Cinnamon, Max, and Harley.

For the last 4 years of her life, she lived with corticobasal degeneration, a rare fatal neurodegenerative disease with no treatment and very little research. Mary Ellen’s family would like to give special thanks to her caretaker Lorenza who brought so much joy in the last year of her life, and Jessica, Vanessa, and Darci from Tru Hospice in Longmont, Colorado for the exceptional care that they gave her.

A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at Saint Gregory’s Church, 2223 Dorchester Avenue,Dorchester, Thursday February 9, 2023 at 10:00 o'clock. Family and friends invited. Visiting hours at Dolan Funeral Home, 1140 Washington Street, DORCHESTER LOWER MILLS, Wednesday 4-8 PM. Interment Cedar Grove Cemetery.

In lieu of flowers, the family gratefully requests donations be made in tribute to Mary Ellen to CurePSP, an organization devoted to finding a cure for rare neurodegenerative diseases. Now that she is free of this disease her family imagines Mary Ellen cheering on her beloved Red Sox (even when they are terrible), enjoying her garden, and always watching over those she loves. We love you, always and forever!