Karen Nascembeni receives Commonwealth Heroine Award

 

By DAN TOMASELLO

LYNNFIELD — North Shore Music Theatre General Manager Karen Nascembeni has dedicated her life to helping people, and that has been especially true after surviving a battle with COVID-19 three years ago.

Nascembeni’s hard work was recognized when she received a 2023 Commonwealth Heroine Award from the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women (MCSW) during a luncheon held at the Massachusetts State House’s Great Hall of Flags on Friday, June 23.  There were 125 women from across the state who received the award.

“It’s a humbling honor,” said Nascembeni in an interview with the Villager.  “Most people who do good deeds in the community never want to be recognized for it. They extend kindness naturally because it comes from the heart.”

House Minority Leader Brad Jones (R-North Reading), a close friend of Nascembenis, nominated her for a 2023 Commonwealth Heroine Award.

“Karen is a shining example of someone who has faced personal adversity and emerged stronger from the experience,” Jones wrote in a statement sent to the Villager. “She is a true role model and a source of inspiration for everyone she meets. She embodies the spirit of the Commonwealth Heroine Award and is fully deserving of the honor bestowed on her by the Massachusetts Commission on the Status of Women.”

Jones recalled that Nascembeni “suffered the unimaginable loss of her husband, photographer Steven Richard, and her father-in-law, Earl Richard, within a five-day span” after they contracted COVID-19 three years ago.

“Karen also contracted the coronavirus, but made a full recovery,” said Jones. “She has worked to carry on her husband’s legacy through a memorial scholarship that helps provide financial support to emerging photography students.”

In addition to losing her husband and father-in-law to COVID-19, Nascembeni also lost her good friend Don Kelley to the virus. She said Jones and his wife, Linda, were incredibly supportive during her recovery.

“Brad acknowledged my advocacy during the COVID-19 pandemic for masking, vaccinations and as a spokesperson for healthy grieving during this horrific time,” said Nascembeni.

Nascembeni attended the luncheon with her sister, Sandra McArthur, who she called “my heroine.”

“I would not be standing today without her devout advocacy during my two-month hospitalization, my four-month rehab in her home and beyond,” said Nascembeni. “She is my rock and truly the epitome of an unsung heroine.”

While Nascembeni was formally recognized during the State House luncheon on June 23, Jones presented his dear friend with the award at the annual Summer Solstice fundraiser that was held at Ralph and Stacey Sevinor’s home on June 22.

“Brad surprised me at his fundraiser by presenting me with the award,” said Nascembeni. “He gave a very heartfelt speech about Steven and the work I’ve done in the community. He also acknowledged the great work done by last year’s recipient, Think of Michael President Carmela Dalton, who I respect and admire deeply.”

The MCSW has presented over 2,000 women with the Commonwealth Heroine Award since 2004. The award was previously known as the Unsung Heroine Award.

“The Commonwealth Heroines are women who don’t make the news, but make all the difference in their communities,” said MCSW Chairwoman Dr. Sarah Glenn-Smith in a statement. “Thousands of women in every community across the commonwealth perform unheralded acts on a daily basis that make our homes, neighborhoods, cities and towns better places to live. Commonwealth Heroines use their time, talent, spirit and enthusiasm to enrich the lives of others in their community. They are mentors, volunteers and innovators — they are the glue that keeps a community together.”

Nascembeni said it was an honor standing alongside the 124 other women who received the Commonwealth Heroine Award.

“Each recipient went out of their way to meet the other awardees to congratulate and acknowledge the good work they have done,” said Nascembeni. “These women are true heroines.”

After waking up from a 31-day coma three years ago, Nascembeni quickly realized she had an important decision to make.

“I said to myself, you have a choice to make here in this moment,” said Nascembeni. “You can grieve for the 30 years you are not going to have with Steven, or you can be grateful for the gift of the 30 glorious years you shared together. I also felt like it would have been a disservice to the countless medical professionals who fought so hard to save me to not go out and live a life of positivity and joy. I learned the meaning of gratitude on a very deep level.”

Nascembeni has dedicated herself to volunteerism over the course of the past three years. She said it was important to launch “a new mission to honor Steven every day by paying that love forward by doing something good in the community.”

“I couldn’t see surviving my ordeal any other way,” said Nascembeni.

Nascembeni said one of the first and “most emotionally difficult” initiatives she undertook was bringing back the Country Store fundraiser to the Meeting House in December 2021 and 2022.

“Steven and I co-hosted the Country Store together for over a decade and which lapsed during the pandemic of 2020,” said Nascembeni.  “With the support of countless friends, family and community members, I poured every ounce of love into that event I had in me. It was an incredibly beautiful way to honor both Steven and Earl. The event was near and dear to both of them.”

Jones commended Nascembeni for helping “restore a longtime local tradition by organizing a successful re-launch of the town’s Country Store during the 2021 holiday season after it had been shut down for a year.”

Nascembeni is also serving as an executive producer for her dear friend Nate Bertone’s new play, “The Sea View Nursing Home for the Newly Deceased.” She said Bertone is “like a son” to her as well as her late husband.

“It is an incredibly beautiful play,” said Nascembeni. “It is a brilliant healing piece that is so necessary and timely for what we all need right now. I produced a small table reading in New York this past fall, followed by a sold out performance at North Shore Music Theatre in December, and then raised the funds to lead produce a spectacular two-day industry reading in New York this spring that was attended by some of the biggest Broadway and film producers, investors and theater owners in the industry.”

Nascembeni is also being featured in Gloucester portrait artist Amy Kerr’s “I Am More” exhibit.

“Amy asked me to be a subject in the exhibit and created a portrait of me, which is accompanied by an essay I wrote about my journey as a COVID survivor and widow,” said Nascembeni. “My first appearance in the exhibit was at the State House, followed by the Northshore Mall, Burlington Mall and other locations throughout New England. The exhibit features dozens of profiles of folks living with various mental health issues, many brought on by loss or trauma.”

Jones also noted that Nascembeni is “a tireless advocate for the performing arts while serving as the general manager and driving force behind the North Shore Music Theatre.”

Nascembeni has learned throughout her journey that there is “so much light, kindness and good in the world.”

“People say to me all the time, I couldn’t survive what you went through,” said Nascembeni. “I always say, until you’re in the trenches, looking death in the face, you don’t know what you’re capable of. Don’t count yourself out. With everything I have lost, my life is still an embarrassment of riches. Three years later, people are still supporting me, bringing me food, checking in on me and just showing up. It’s overwhelming. I am so incredibly blessed.”

Nascembeni suggested that people who lose a loved one to get a grief counselor in order to help them heal.

“I would also tell them to always live in a place of gratitude,” added Nascembeni. “You can’t help but find something to smile about when you’re grateful. Most of all, I would tell them that the only way to the other side is right through the heart of it. You can’t ignore grief. It sneaks up on you at the most unexpected times. You just have to acknowledge it and breathe through it.”

Nascembeni said a large number of people played important roles with helping her navigate the past three years.

“I want to thank Brad Jones for nominating me for this award and his wife Linda for checking in on me regularly during these past three years,” said Nascembeni.  “They have gone above and beyond the call of duty. I would also like to thank so many in the Lynnfield community and beyond for their unwavering support. No man stands alone. There is an army of people behind me in every good deed I do.”