Sylvia May (Wood) Ward

March 26, 1933 – July 17, 2025

It is with great sadness and much love that the family of Sylvia May Ward, 92, of Newport, Vermont, says goodbye to our beloved mother, grandmother, great-grandmother, and great-great-grandmother.

Sylvia passed on July 17, 2025, at North Country Hospital in Newport.  She was born on March 26, 1933, in East Charleston, Vermont and grew up in the Newport area.

Sylvia met the love of her life, John Omar Ward, Sr. (who predeceased her) when she was 16 years old and they were married for 73 years.  Together, they settled in Newport, raising seven children and sharing 73 long and love-filled years together.

Sylvia was the model of what a mother should be.  There was nothing that she would not do for her family.  She held numerous jobs throughout her lifetime, of which included housecleaning, making homemade pies for Kelley's restaurant in Derby Line, waitressing at the Governor Prouty Inn, working at the Ethan Allen plant in Orleans, and Butterfield's (now Trivoly Inc.) in Derby Line.  Sylvia was always known to be a very dedicated employee, always doing her best, and being recognized for her outstanding work principles.  However, her best job and the one that was most satisfying to her, was being a wife and a mother and providing for her husband and her seven children.

Sylvia had many interests, including gardening, knitting, playing cards, doing puzzles, completing the word search in the Newport Daily Express, and of course, her favorite passion of cooking, especially baking homemade goods.  No one could make homemade baked goods like her, especially her homemade pies, doughnuts, and raspberry squares.  On many occasions, Sylvia would bake goods for the church or for town meeting day and people would wait for her goodies to be delivered and purchase them immediately.  Sylvia knit 100s of pair of mittens for her children, grandchildren, great-grandchildren, and needy children within the Newport city school system and other needy children in the local area.

Sylvia always made time for her family regardless of what was going on in her life.  On many get-togethers and gatherings, her family was the recipients of incredible feasts and holiday dinners.  No one could prepare a full-blown meal like she could.

Sylvia's kindness, generosity, and devotion to her family and others, will be deeply missed.

The family would like to thank the staff at North Country Hospital for their exceptional care prior to Sylvia's passing.

Sylvia is survived by her seven children:  John Jr. and his wife Diane Ward, Gary and his wife Susan Ward, Norman Ward, Jeffrey and his wife Cheryl Ward, Alan and his wife Dulcinea Ribeiro Ward, Susan (Ward) Morin, Ronald and his wife Debra Ward; two sisters: Linda Jones and her companion Alan Garceau; and Lorraine Webber and her husband Dwight Webber; 13 grandchildren, 16 great-grandchildren, and 1 great-great-grandchild; and many beloved relatives.

There will be a Celebration of Life scheduled for Tuesday, July 22, 2025 at 11:00am at the United Church of Newport, 63 3rd Street, Newport, VT  05855. Friends may call at the Church on Tuesday July 22, 2025 from 10:00 A.M. until the hour of the funeral.  Interment will follow the service at the West Charleston cemetery, 11 Corkins Road, West Charleston, VT  05872. Friends and family are invited to the East Side Restaurant, 47 Landing Street, Newport, VT  05855 for a buffet meal, in celebration of Sylvia's life, following the burial.  In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the United Church of Newport, Newport,Vt.   On-line condolences may be made at curtis-britch.com.  Arrangements are entrusted to the care of Curtis-Britch & Bouffard Funeral Home & Cremation Service, locally family owned and operated.