THE SAUGUS ADVOCATE – FriDAy, JUly 28, 2023 ~ The Advocate Asks ~ Page 3 Maddie (Gould) Armstrong, the last of 11 children, reflects on the Gould Family Farm that once thrived on Walnut Street Editor’s Note: For this week’s column, we sat down with 101-year-old Saugus native Madeline Grace Gould Armstrong, who grew up and lived on the Gould Family Farm at 196 Walnut St. She is the last survivor of 11 children of James and Nellie Gould, who ran a popular family farmstand that sold vegetables on Walnut Street. They also had a successful dairy business. And, in later years, the family got into the flower business, which later evolved into Gould’s Florist of Lynnfield. More commonly known to relatives as “Aunt Maddie,” she was born on May 8, 1922, on the farm where her family lived and worked – the eighth oldest in a family of 11 children to James Joseph and Ellen T. (Nellie) Gould, Irish immigrants who moved to Saugus and began the farm around 1920. Maddie now spends half of the year in Palm Bay, Florida, and half of the year in Limerick, Maine. She went to Saugus High School when it was located on Winter Street and is a member of the Saugus High Class of 1940. She studied at Malden Business School and received her Bachelor of Science degree in Education from Nazareth College in Bardstown, Kentucky. She lived on the farm for the first 20 years of her life. Then she left to become a nun, where she spent the next 16 years attached to the convent at Sisters of Charity of Nazareth, Kentucky. She returned to Saugus to help her mother when her dad’s health began declining. Maddie excelled as a teacher consider to be your most fondest memory? A: The wonderful times I had living on the farm. My mother and father were so kind and we had such a wonASKS | SEE PAGE 4 Relaxing in their summer cottage on Sokokis Lake in Limerick, Maine, are 101-year-old Madeline Grace Gould Armstrong and her nephew, Shawn Buckless. (Saugus Advocate photo by Mark E. Vogler) while a nun. She used that experience to carve out a career for herself in public education. She taught different levels of grade school for 29 years for the town of Danvers. Maddie was married to Martin V. Armstrong of Melrose for 46 years. He died in 2008 at the age of 81. Maddie has lived in Florida for 38 years. She lives with her nephew, Shawn Buckless, splitting time between their home in Palm Bay, Fla., and the cottage in Limerick, Maine. Buckless credits “brains and determination” for his aunt’s longevity. “You don’t live to be 101 unless you are darn determined,” he said in a recent interview. “Maddie is really like her mother. They were both women ahead of their time – women’s libbers before there were women’s libbers. They were both free-thinking women. They were no slaves to fashion. They didn’t care about the frivolous. They were very strong women in their day,” he said. Maddie is the aunt of Saugus School Committee Member Joseph “Dennis” Gould, who suggested that The Saugus Advocate interview her about being 101 and her reflections of what life was like on the Gould Family Farm. Here are some highlights from this week’s interview. Q: When you look back at 101 years of life, what do you 425r Broadway, Saugus Located adjacent to Kohls Plaza Route 1 South in Saugus at the intersection of Walnut St. We are on MBTA Bus Route 429 781-231-1111 We are a Skating Rink with Bowling Alleys, Arcade and two TV’s where the ball games are always on! PUBLIC SKATING SCHEDULE 12-8 p.m. Sunday Monday Tuesday $9.00 Price includes Roller Skates Rollerblades/inline skates $3.00 additional cost Private Parties 7:30-11 p.m. $10.00 Price includes Roller Skates Adult Night 18+ Only Wednesday Thursday Friday Everyone must pay admission after 6 p.m. Private Parties Private Parties 4-11 p.m. Saturday 12-11 p.m. $9.00 $9.00 Everyone must pay admission after 6 p.m. Sorry No Checks - ATM on site Roller skate rentals included in all prices Inline Skate Rentals $3.00 additional BIRTHDAY & PRIVATE PARTIES AVAILABLE www.roller-world.com
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