Received awards for selfless service
Published December 16, 2020
WEST PALM BEACH, Fla. — Alan C. Nichols, 81, of West Palm Beach, Fla., died on Monday, Dec. 7, 2020, of COVID-related illness.
Alan was a longtime Boston resident living in the Beacon Hill and South End neighborhoods for many years.
He was the son of the late Lionel and Margaret (“Margie”) Nichols and grew up in Wakefield with numerous family members in a small duplex home on Rockland Street. Alan was predeceased by his sister Marcia (Nichols) Barrett. He graduated from Wakefield High School in 1957 and Merrimack College in 1962. Alan secured his master’s degree from Columbia University and worked in the healthcare industry for many years before his retirement.
Alan loved the theater and performing arts. He also enjoyed playing tennis and biking. In his earlier years, he spent summers in northern Maine in the Rangeley Lakes region. He was an advocate for taking care of those less fortunate and in recent years spent his time volunteering at hospitals in Wells, Maine, in the summers and West Palm Beach in the winter months.
His enthusiasm for taking care of people was recognized with awards for his selflessness and service to others both in Maine and Florida. He was a kind and gentle soul who espoused the life lesson of treating people the way in which you wish to be treated yourself.
Alan married the love of his life, Jerry Fitzgerald, in Maine during the summer of 2012. They spent their time between homes in Ogunquit Maine, and West Palm Beach. He is survived by Jerry and his two nephews, John Barrett of Bethesda, Md., and Michael Barrett of North Andover, their wives Adelaide and Kathy and five children. He is also survived by many cousins and their families in the Melrose and Wakefield area, and will be dearly missed by all.
Alan will be cremated in Florida and services will be held in the spring of 2021 at St. Patrick’s Cemetery in Stoneham, where he will be laid to rest with his parents and grandparents. A celebration of his life will be held at that time.
