Mrs. Coreen Elizabeth (Wallace) Scharfe, passed away surrounded by her loving family on December 27th.
Born on May 18th, 1950 to James and Coreen (Coleman) Wallace in New York, New York, Coreen spent most of her childhood living in West Islip, New York. It was there she met her husband, George, when they were only in eighth grade and began a life together that included 51 years of marriage.
Coreen and George started their married life in New York City before moving to Lexington, MA when work brought George to Boston. With starting a family on the horizon, they moved to their beloved Folly Cove in Gloucester, MA where they welcomed surprise twins, Molly and Gretchen, in 1977, and daughter, Kirsten, in 1981. A graduate of Colby Sawyer Jr College and SUNY Potsdam, Coreen ran a successful second-hand store, The Baby Exchange, before moving to Manchester. A highlight for her was when the store was featured on a segment of “Evening Magazine.” Family was everything to Coreen and her love knew no bounds. She spent much of her time supporting her children, and later her grandchildren. She could often be found on the sidelines of games or shuttling someone to and from school. She was always there to lend a hand. Coreen was also very active in her children and grandchildren’s schooling, serving as an elementary school trustee and also teaching Sunday School to her youngest granddaughters. She was very active in her church, St. Paul’s Lutheran Church in Gloucester, arranging flowers for the altar, helping with holiday decorating, and even singing in the choir. Coreen also spent some time working for Lutheran Social Services.
In her free time, Coreen enjoyed craft arts of all kinds, was an avid rug hooker and quilter, and very handy with a needle and thread. She loved flowers and “mucking in the dirt.” Cor and George loved to ski, downhill and cross-country. Most of all, she loved to be on the water, sailing and boating (maybe napping). She and George had met sailing and being on the water continued to be a source of great joy. Coreen was a competitive sailor both as crew and skipper for most of her life but that had given way to casual Sunday sails, cocktail cruises and searching for whales. She really loved her Friday evenings spent on the boat with George and their friends. She also won the Manchester Yacht Club’s prestigious Henry Hall Trophy twice and the Crocodile Trophy. She will be missed by her friends at the MYC, Crocker’s Boat Yard, and the Scharfes’ home away from home, Cala’s.
Coreen is predeceased by her husband George, who passed in July. She will be forever missed by her daughters, Gretchen Forsyth, Molly Prinn and Kirsten Richardson, her sons-in-law, Kirk Forsyth, Steve Prinn and Jesse Richardson, and her grandchildren, Katherine, Emily and Annie Prinn, Elizabeth and Charlotte Forsyth and Benjamin Richardson. She was predeceased by her brother, Frank Wallace, but leaves behind her sister, Ellen Wallace and brother, Jay Wallace and all their families. As she was a part of the Scharfe family for so long, it is also important to note she leaves her sister-in-law, Marie Jerge and her brother-in-law, Alan Scharfe and their families as well. She was a devoted aunt who doted on all her nieces and nephews.
ARRANGEMENTS: A service for friends and family will be held at St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 1123 Washington St., Gloucester on Thursday, January 4th, 2024 at 11 a.m., with a reception to follow at the Essex County Club, 153 School St., Manchester. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to St. Paul’s Lutheran Church, 1123 Washington St., Gloucester, MA 01930 or to Glen Urquhart School, 74 Hart St., Beverly, MA 01915.
