Becky Jean Clough

Becky Jean Clough, RN

Becky – Becky Jean. Becky Jean Thompson Clough. She was passionate about life, full of energy and she was a winner. She lit up a room or the workplace with her cheery and loud, “Good morning or hello, I’m here.” And she was always late, late for everything. That was our Becky.

Becky was the oldest sibling and had four sisters and a brother. She was diagnosed with cancer when she was 44 years old and passed away when she was only 51. She kicked off the Lewiston-Auburn Relay For Life in 2003 five months before she lost her battle to breast cancer. Sharing thoughts about Becky’s life will give you a picture of who she was to so many, whether a big sister or a mom to her son and daughter – Mikaela and Ian, or an aunt to nieces and nephews – and even as a friend to many. We are sure she is watching over her grandchildren and would be a very special Grammie to Coen and Chase.

She was a wonderful mother and so very proud of her children. Whether watching Kaela play field hockey or Ian play soccer – she loved it! And she cheered for them with passion.

As far as her battle with cancer, she never gave up… about one week before she died she still insisted that the nurses do blood work on her and she wanted to know her number (which at this point was never good). One night, her doctor came to visit her at home and asked her why she kept having this blood work done and, being the fighter she was, she told him she was waiting for her miracle.

Upon Becky’s passing, all of her nieces, nephews and siblings wrote about her – one of these was a poem by her niece and godchild Kendra entitled ‘Godmother’:

She brought me gifts on my birthday.

Without a doubt, came with me on our yearly canoe trip.

She sewed me a blanket all by herself.

I love her dearly.

She got cancer.

All her beautiful hair was gone.

But, that didn’t slow her down one bit.

She came to dinner all the time.

I love her dearly.

She got a divorce.

That slowed her down, a little.

Sometimes she breaks down and cries.

She still came with us on our canoe trip.

I love her dearly.

She got kidney stones.

She slowed down, a little more.

She sent a card for my birthday.

Took her longer to sew.

I loved her dearly.

She got cancer…again.

She stopped.

I loved her dearly.

In remembrance of my Aunt Becky Clough

Becky lived life with an energetic flare that was all her own. She did everything with excitement. She was a beautiful ballet dancer with grace and poise. She was an aerobics instructor who instilled in her students that they would be fit! She was competitive in athletics, whether she was running or doing whatever she decided to challenge herself with.

Becky’s biggest passion was being a nurse. She worked hard to achieve her LPN and then went on for her RN. Her passion was her patients and she got close enough to them to care. Whether the patient was her Mom – or a premature baby or an elderly person in hospice care, she felt connected with each and every person. Becky honored the life process that each patient was going through, especially if it was the end of their time here. Becky had a phrase written on a note pad. She communicated this saying to the people she assisted. It read:

Forgive and Release,

Release and Let Go,

Let Go and Let God.

Becky served the needs of others before her own. Her Mom was diagnosed with cancer – before she was – and she never left her side throughout every stage of her journey. She gave her Mom courage – and all of us as we watched her caring for our Mom who was Grammie to our children.

She supported a sister and her husband who was diagnosed with cancer in 2002, the same year her breast cancer aggressively returned. Becky put her own needs second. She helped care for the husband while she was undergoing treatment herself. At one point, he was in Brigham and Women’s hospital in Boston for a prolonged time. She traveled down on her days off because she was concerned with their needs, not hers. She was a sister and a dedicated nurse.

Becky was full of life’s lessons. She was above all else honest. We have a traditional family dessert, Cherry Cream Delight. We all knew that she did not like Cherry Cream Delight because she announced one year that she NEVER liked it as if this news would impact us all. She was also the one who told siblings when they were ‘cool’ (or not) and what was needed to get there.

Becky was strong through every phase and challenge of her life – even in her passing. She was not afraid – she was the “big sister.” When any one of us felt like we could not be who we were without her, she assured us that we would be whom we were meant to be – even in her absence. A person once said that they had received the gift of courage to go on from the very person who was passing on, and she did that for us all. She gave us courage.

Becky loved her family and friends. They were what made life important. She adored all of her nieces and nephews. Her favorite times were family gatherings at the holidays or summer at the lake or cookouts in the back yards or paddling down the Androscoggin in a canoe with family all around. She loved riding in her step-dad’s convertible. It always made her feel like a kid.

When Becky was near the end of this journey she said, “I feel like I’m waiting for something, but I don’t know what I’m waiting for or how long I will be waiting.”

Becky knew the impact of her role here at the Relay For Life. She seized the moment when she was at this event. Becky knew that her animation and high spirits would make people feel better. Pretty simple – just make people feel better. That was our Becky.

With eternal love – we share her life,

Her siblings, children, grandchildren, nieces, nephews, and step-dad