Berta Afonso

Berta Maria (Pacheco) Afonso, 88, of 21 Greenway Drive, passed away on November 30, 2023, at home surrounded by her family.  She was the wife of the late Evaristo Afonso.    

Born in Ponta Delgada, St. Michael, Azores, she was the daughter of the late Manuel and Maria Jose (Pimentel) Pacheco. She is survived by: her children Paul (Mary Lou) Afonso of Boston, MA and Maria Doherty of Bristol; grandchildren Ryan (Lauren), Shannen (Patrick), Morgan, Caroline, and  Bridgette; great grandchildren McKinley, Shaelyn, and Delilah; siblings Antonio (Maria) Pacheco, Eduarda (the late David) Coroa, Connie (Bill) Pacheco, Manuel (Diane) Pacheco, Mary Jo (Lee) DeOliveira, Fatima (Joe) Dias and  Luis Pacheco;  brother-in-law Edmund Santos and sister-in-law Rosa Pacheco; and many loving nieces and nephews. 

She was predeceased by her siblings Elba Santos and Carlos Pacheco. 

Mrs. Afonso was educated in Portugal and employed by Dixon Corporation for 32 years before retiring.  She began her journey to this country, with her husband Evaristo and two small children in 1967, leaving by all counts a comfortable life behind to join her family in Bristol.  It was a traditional immigrant story, of seeking a better life and opportunities for her children and family.  This sacrifice led to a wonderful life, not without sacrifice and pain, and a wonderful and loyal family with her daughter, son and daughter-in-law, five grandchildren and three great-grandchildren. She especially took pride in her confident, talented and beautiful four granddaughters and handsome and smart grandson.  But, in her later years, it was the arrival of the three “amigas” her wonderful great-granddaughters that kept her young, engaged and happy.  They looked forward to seeing vavo and she could not wait to see them and spend time recreating the many things that she had taught her children and grandchildren.  Her siblings brought her great joy as they spent many happy years with laughter, stories, and perfecting many family recipes.  They gave her much happiness and strength.  She was a humble, kind, strong and wise woman, who relied deeply on her Catholic faith, one she quietly practiced with action and deed for over 50 years as a faithful parishioner at St. Elizabeth’s Parish.

Relative and friends are respectively invited to attend visiting hours at the George Lima Funeral Home, 367 High Street, Bristol RI, on Sunday December 3rd from 2-6 pm and Monday, December 4th, 10 AM, with a Mass of Christian Burial, 11 AM at St. Elizabeth Church, 577 Wood Street, Bristol RI. Burial will follow in St. Mary’s Cemetery. 

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to her parish – St. Elizabeth Church, 577 Wood Street, Bristol RI 02809, or The Benjamin Church Senior Center, 1020 Hope Street, Bristol RI 02809.

Thistle & Posy Florist, 204 Gooding Ave, Bristol RI (401-808-1354).

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Berta Afonso, please visit our floral store.