Anna J. Byra

Haverhill, MA:  Anna J. (Grasso) Byra, 91, of Haverhill, died Thursday, March 28, 2013, at the Merrimack Valley Hospice House, Haverhill.

Born in Haverhill, daughter of Sebastian and Mary (Pacheco) Grasso, she attended local schools and graduated from Haverhill High School with the Class of 1940.   She worked for the local shoe industry including Bixby Box Toe, Haverhill, the former Western Electric Company, North Andover and for Operation Alligator, Haverhill, which later became Clicker City. Mrs. Byra lived in Haverhill for most of her life except for the last few years where she resided in Plaistow, NH with her daughter.

She was a member of All Saints Parish and the former St. Rita’s Parish, Haverhill and was active at the Methuen Senior Center.  Mrs. Byra enjoyed doing arts and crafts, especially Japanese Bunker.  She was kind to all animals and especially enjoyed her pet cats.

The widow of the late Joseph J. “Shorty” Byra, who died in 1993, she is survived by two sons, Kenneth J. Byra of Malden and John R. Byra of Exeter, NH and his fiancé, Laurie Eldridge, a daughter and son-in-law, Joyce A. & Richard Lundin of Plaistow, NH; two sisters, Lucy Johnson of Haverhill and Alice Greenwood of Fountain Valley, CA; eight grandchildren and eleven great grandchildren and several nieces and nephews.  She was predeceased by four brothers, Manuel, Joseph, Sebastian and Albert Grasso and a sister, Rose Romel.

Relatives and friends may call on Sunday, March 31, 2013, from 5 to 8 PM at Brookside Chapel & Funeral Home, 116 Main St., Route 121A (Plaistow Village), Plaistow, NH.  Her funeral will begin on Monday, April 1, 2013, at 9 AM from the funeral home with a Mass of Christian Burial at 10 AM in All Saints Church, Haverhill.  Burial will take place in St. James Cemetery, Haverhill.

To leave a message of condolence, please visit our website at www.brooksidechapelfh.com