Jean M. Fielding

Greenfield, Massachusetts
Jean M. Fielding, 70, of Greenfield, MA, passed away on Friday evening, 12/14, at Charlene Manor, of an unknown neurological disorder.

Jean was born in 1948 to Parents John Angus Fielding and Marie Anita Fielding (Lavallee) in Ware, MA, and grew up in Springfield, MA. Jean married her husband, Gary Greene, also of Greenfield, in 1984. Besides her husband, she is survived by siblings Lauri Fielding (Peter Natti) of Rockport, MA, Eileen Fielding (Michael Moschen) of Cornwall Bridge, CT, Greg (Lori Jean) Fielding of Holland, MA, sister-in-law Sherry (Goodrum) Fielding (Bruce Fielding, deceased), of AL, numerous nieces, nephews and cousins, and her nursing home roommate, Donna Thomas, who became such a special and much loved friend in the brief time they had together, and who helped in so many ways to support Jean through her trial.

Jean was a graduate of Cathedral High School, UMass, Springfield College and Western New England College of Law. She held multiple advanced degrees, including an MBA and Juris Doctor. While at WNEC, she was a member of the Law Review, and published in the WNE Law Review. While at UMass, she joined the Judo team, practicing the sport for nearly a decade, earning her Black Belt and the title of Women's National Champion multiple times, including Grand Champion at the Third National USJA Women's Judo Championship, a fact about which she was unjustly modest.

Prior to attending law school, Jean held a variety of positions, the last of which was Production Control Manager for Titeflex Corporation of Springfield, where she met her husband.

Passing the State Bar Exam on her first attempt, Jean became an accomplished Criminal Appellate Attorney, handling post-conviction appeals for CPCS (Committee for Public Counsel Services). She was known for taking extraordinary care of her clients, treating them as human beings who needed counseling and understanding as well as legal services. She sponsored several clients to help them attain degrees and other training while incarcerated.

A lifelong learner, Jean excelled at nearly everything she tried. In her teens she became an expert equestrienne, competing in many shows. At 17, she decided to try skydiving, and loved it. Ahead of her time, she was known for riding her yellow Vespa motor scooter to and from Cathedral High School. Always artistic, in later years, she became an accomplished oil painter, specializing in portraits, exhibiting and selling her works locally and at the Stratton Art Festival. Because her husband was a skier, she took up skiing and, being Jean, became an expert, at one point being offered a job as a ski instructor. She loved classical music and took up the piano. Late in life, she joined the Carmelite Order as part of her Catholic faith.

More than all her accomplishments, Jean was an exceptional woman, generous throughout her life with both her heart and her smile. She saw the best in the people around her, and always gave them the best of herself. A lifelong optimist, Jean invariably expected a positive outcome, and due to her optimism, often achieved it. Despite a nearly lifelong challenge of asthma, during the nearly eight month course of her disease, her arduous journey through several hospitals, innumerable tests and, finally, her stay in a nursing home, she never complained, never pitied herself, and tried her best to meet every challenge, even as her mind and body failed her. She greeted all those who assisted her with her thousand-watt smile and a positive attitude. She loved them all, and many of her caregivers came to love her in return.

Special thanks to all the personnel at Charlene Manor personally involved in attending to Jean, as well as her caring physicians, Dr. Adam Blacksin, Dr. Vanessa Van Stee, Dr. Robert Ajello, and the staff at Massachusetts General Hospital.

A Mass of Christian Burial, conducted by Father Sean O'Mannion, will take place at Our Lady of Czestochowa, 84 K St., Turners Falls, MA, at 10am on December 28th, with interment to follow at Green River Cemetery in Greenfield, MA. There will be no visitation. In lieu of flowers, donations in Jean's name to the Food Bank of Western Mass, a cause she passionately supported, at 97 N Hatfield Rd, Hatfield, MA, 01038, would be greatly appreciated.

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