Obituary for Alice Ripley (Cornwell)
Alice Ripley of Kingston, MA passed away peacefully in her home Wednesday, March 9th, 2022
surrounded by family. She was 86 years old.
Devoted mother to Beth and her husband Daniel Despres, Laura and her husband Steve Lunetta, Susan
Ripley, and Preston Ripley Jr. Beloved “Gram” to her grandchildren Kate, Jason, Abbie, Tina, Greg,
Alora, and Cody, as well as her great-grandchildren Christian, Annabel, Evie, Zoey, Julia, Brennan,
Libby, Riley, June, and Scarlett. Loving sister to Burr Cornwell Jr. and aunt to Jessica Curtin and Sarah
McGuirk.
She was preceded in death by her parents Margaret (Osborne) Cornwell and Burr Cornwell Sr., her sister
and brother-in-law Esther and Raymond Osborne, and her sister-in-law Betty Cornwell.
Alice was born on August 31st, 1935 in Norwell, MA. She grew up on Bowker Street in Norwell
surrounded by her large extended family. Later, she raised her four children in Hanson, MA with her ex-
husband Preston Ripley Sr. She was a tireless leader for all her children’s activities, from Sunday School
to the PTA.
Family and friends were the most important thing to Alice. She loved cooking and caring for everyone
around her. She had a passion for all things crafts and was exceptionally creative and artistic. Some of
her biggest joys in life came from cake decorating, creating floral arrangements, and sewing. It wouldn’t
have surprised any of us if they had a photo of her on the wall of The Christmas Tree Shops labeled
“Customer of the Century”.
In addition to cooking, she also loved baking, playing card games, reading romance novels, and
watching murder mysteries on TV. She played a mean game of Cribbage and was known to mop the
floor in Scrabble.
She worked for many years at Blue Cross Blue Shield in Rockland, MA, and made lifelong friends
there.
In 2000 Alice moved from Norwell to Kingston and spent the last two decades living with a rotating cast
of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. She was adored by all who knew her and will be
missed dearly.
A Celebration of Life will be held for Alice at 12:00pm on Sunday April 10th, 2022 at the Oak Point
Clubhouse located at 202 Oak Point Drive Middleboro, MA 02346.
surrounded by family. She was 86 years old.
Devoted mother to Beth and her husband Daniel Despres, Laura and her husband Steve Lunetta, Susan
Ripley, and Preston Ripley Jr. Beloved “Gram” to her grandchildren Kate, Jason, Abbie, Tina, Greg,
Alora, and Cody, as well as her great-grandchildren Christian, Annabel, Evie, Zoey, Julia, Brennan,
Libby, Riley, June, and Scarlett. Loving sister to Burr Cornwell Jr. and aunt to Jessica Curtin and Sarah
McGuirk.
She was preceded in death by her parents Margaret (Osborne) Cornwell and Burr Cornwell Sr., her sister
and brother-in-law Esther and Raymond Osborne, and her sister-in-law Betty Cornwell.
Alice was born on August 31st, 1935 in Norwell, MA. She grew up on Bowker Street in Norwell
surrounded by her large extended family. Later, she raised her four children in Hanson, MA with her ex-
husband Preston Ripley Sr. She was a tireless leader for all her children’s activities, from Sunday School
to the PTA.
Family and friends were the most important thing to Alice. She loved cooking and caring for everyone
around her. She had a passion for all things crafts and was exceptionally creative and artistic. Some of
her biggest joys in life came from cake decorating, creating floral arrangements, and sewing. It wouldn’t
have surprised any of us if they had a photo of her on the wall of The Christmas Tree Shops labeled
“Customer of the Century”.
In addition to cooking, she also loved baking, playing card games, reading romance novels, and
watching murder mysteries on TV. She played a mean game of Cribbage and was known to mop the
floor in Scrabble.
She worked for many years at Blue Cross Blue Shield in Rockland, MA, and made lifelong friends
there.
In 2000 Alice moved from Norwell to Kingston and spent the last two decades living with a rotating cast
of her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren. She was adored by all who knew her and will be
missed dearly.
A Celebration of Life will be held for Alice at 12:00pm on Sunday April 10th, 2022 at the Oak Point
Clubhouse located at 202 Oak Point Drive Middleboro, MA 02346.