Beryl Louise Gray

Beryl Louise Gray, of Sudbury, was promoted to glory on Tuesday, April 16, 2024. She was blessed with 94 years of abundant life. 

Beryl was born in Newton, MA on December 12, 1929, to Clarence Rudolf Pieterse and Hildred Christina (Hebb) Pieterse. Raised in Watertown, Beryl graduated from high school in 1947 and at the age of 19, she met her future husband Bradford Herbert Gray on a blind date. This was Brad’s first date while being on shore leave from the U.S. Navy in which he served during World War II and the Korean War. “God knew what he was doing when he brought us together,” Beryl would often say. After Brad returned to active duty, the new couple kept in touch through letters. His persistence led to their engagement just a year after that providential first date. They were married just two months later, on Veterans Day of 1950. Brad and Beryl enjoyed an unforgettable honeymoon in Beryl’s mother’s native Nova Scotia, a community that forever held a special place in her heart. 

Within a year, Beryl gave birth to their first son Brad. After her husband’s eventual honorable discharge from the Navy, the couple settled for a short time in Newton, where they stayed until the birth of their second son Steve in 1953. Needing more space for their growing family, the couple relocated to Sudbury to raise their children with their third son, Glenn, joining them in 1956. 

After her sons grew up, Beryl put her trust in Jesus and he became Lord of her life. She then found her purpose in ministering to those who needed nurturing, because of what Christ had done for her.

Beryl’s sons married incredible women who quickly became her beloved daughters - Mary, Carol, and Jo-Anne. The twenty grandchildren that soon followed blessed Beryl and Brad beyond what they could have imagined. The prudent arrangement of living next door to their family home allowed them to spend decades enjoying the company of their grandchildren daily. 

Over the next several decades, Beryl would come to be known affectionately as “Grandma” by thousands of people whom she hosted and cared for through a weekly bible study that they hosted as well a Sunday supper for her family that quickly included far more people than family.

 A devout Christian, Beryl was a loving grandmother to 20 grandchildren and their spouses and 38 great-grandchildren. They will remember her legacy of faith, prayer, and her caring nature that impacted all of their lives more than she could ever know. 

Beryl had an unwavering faith in Jesus as her Savior and lived out that hope daily until her final days. In her final moments on this earth, she held the hand of her granddaughter and said, “We have so much to look forward to.” 

Beryl was predeceased by her husband Bradford of 52 years, her son Stephen, her brother Charlie and sister Gail, and is survived by her son Brad and his wife, Mary, of Beverly, along with their five children: Joshua, Aaron, Joseph, Jonathan and Bethany; her daughter-in-law Carol, of Marlborough, and her five children: Jill, Stephen, Ryan, Jordan, and Olivia; and her son Glenn, his wife, Jo-Anne, of Sudbury, and their ten children: Carrie-Anne, Charlotte, Havilah, Idelina, Asher, Sparrow, Jasmine, Dalyah, Misha and Aurora. 

 A memorial service will be held on April 22^nd at 11:00 A.M. at New Life Community Church, 221 Baker Ave, Concord, MA.