Martha F. McKenna

November 30, 1933 - June 11, 2017

Rye - Martha (Fougstedt) McKenna, of Rye, formerly of Littleton, MA, passed away peacefully on Sunday, June 11, 2017, at her home surrounded by her loving family. She was the wife of James R. McKenna. Born November 30, 1933 in Concord, MA, Martha was the daughter of the late Lennart and Mary Susan (Sullivan) Fougstedt. Martha was raised and educated in Littleton, MA where she was the president and Salutatorian of the Class of 1951. She then attended Fitchburg State College and received her Bachelors in Education. Later, Martha attended graduate school at Fitchburg State and received her Masters in Special Education. Martha married Jim McKenna on November 24, 1956. After living in Germany for three years, Martha and Jim made their home in Littleton, MA where they raised eight wonderful children. After retirement, Jim and Martha resided in Rye and Clearwater, FL. Martha’s first teaching position was at Fort Devens in Ayer, MA. She then went on to teach at Alpha Omega in Littleton, MA and Nashoba Regional High School in Bolton, MA. Martha was known for her quick wit, patience, gentle nature, quiet strength, and her unending love for her family. Family was the center of her life, Martha cherished spending time with her children, grandchildren, great grandchildren, and sisters, and the feeling was mutual. One of her greatest gifts was her ability to find humor in all situations. A day with her, whether you called her Mum, Grammy, Marthie, or Auntie Marthie would always turn into an adventure. Martha also enjoyed talking about the family history and was always willing to let you know about the ship captain and the witch who graces the family tree, or the time she threw the cat out the second story window just to see if it would land on all four feet (FYI, it did). Martha was an avid reader and was always good for a book recommendation. She did crossword puzzles daily, challenged her children and grandchildren in Words with Friends, could never be beaten in Cribbage, and sent funny pictures of Grampy through Snapchat. In addition to Jim, to whom she was married for 61 years, Martha was loved and admired by her eight children, Shawn of Seabrook, Dennis and Cathy (Popp) of Stamford, NY, Martha and Andy Pierce of Ayer, MA, Theresa and Richard McGrath of Townsend, MA, Timothy of Ayer, MA, Nora and Lenny Leonardo of Groton, MA, Sheila and Eric Kish of Littleton, MA, and Julia and Pete Dunn of Littleton, MA. Her grandchildren: Derek, Daniel, Amy, Britney, Siobhan, Sam, Dennis, Rachele, Renee, Devin, David, Stephen, Lowell, Angela, Erin, Jamie, Paul, Heather, Luke, Garrett, Jason, and Kylie, and her great grandchildren: Ayden, Zach, Owen, and Lila. She will be deeply missed by her two adoring sisters Karen (Fougstedt) Watson of Clearwater, FL and Susan Fougstedt of Littleton, MA, and many nieces and nephews. She was predeceased by her sister, Mary (Fougstedt) Crory Leahy. The family would like to extend our sincere appreciation to the staff at Extended Family LLC in Portsmouth for all the care and love they showed to Martha. Visiting hours will be held from 1 to 3 pm and from 5 to 8 pm on Thursday, June 15, 2017, in the Remick and Gendron Funeral Home - Crematory, 811 Lafayette Rd., Hampton. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated at 11 am on Friday, June 16, 2017 at St. Theresa Parish, 820 Central Rd, Rye Beach. Burial will be in the Central Cemetery, Rye. Family and friends are respectfully invited. In lieu of flowers, donations in Martha’s memory may be made to The Rye Public Library, 581 Washington Rd. Rye, NH 03870 or to The Arthritis Foundation, P.O. Box 96280, Washington, DC 20077 https://donate.arthritis.org/ . Please visit www.Remick Gendron.com to view Martha’s memorial website, to sign her tribute wall or for directions.