Beverly Anne MacLaughlin

MACLAUGHLIN — Beverly Anne (Forrester), 77; born March 20, 1940, Douglas, Mich.; died July 3, 2018, Surprise, Ariz. Surviving: husband, Sam; sons and daughters-in-law, Sammy and Zamela MacLaughlin, Phoenix, Ariz.; Chris and Tricia MacLaughlin, Phoenix; a grandson and granddaughter-in-law, Samuel and Jennifer, Phoenix; granddaughter and grandson-in-law, Cindy and Justin, Phoenix; and a great-granddaughter, Rory.

Beverly Anne MacLaughlin was born on March 20, 1940, in the town of Douglas, Michigan at Douglas Community Hospital, to Wallace Carmen and Evelyn Beatrice Forrester. She grew up on a 40-acre farm next to the Kalamazoo River, about a mile from Lake Michigan. She was the only girl, having four brothers, the youngest, Michael, being almost 11 years younger than Beverly. Her three older brothers are Wallace, Harry and Rudyard. Rudyard goes by the nickname “Pudge” to this day because Beverly found it easier to pronounce as a small child.

As a teenager, Bev was a drum major with the marching band at Fennville High School. Bev met her future husband when the family moved to Maitland, Fla., at age 12. He was teaching her how to drive a Jeep, which she inadvertently drove into an orange grove, and somehow managed not to hit any trees. Five years later, Samuel N. MacLaughlin proposed to Bev by Lake Michigan. They were married Oct. 5, 1957.

Sam told her to keep her bags packed as he liked to travel. They had their first baby boy, Sammy, in Michigan the next year, but shortly afterward, they were on the move, heading to Collegedale, Tenn., where Sam attended Southern Missionary College for a year. Their next stop was Denver, Colo., where their second baby boy, Chris, was born.

Soon, the family headed to Scottsdale, Ariz., then on to Las Cruces, N.M. Their next move was to, El Paso, Texas, and Bev decided to go to college. After moving back to Las Cruces, she was urged to become a teacher’s aide at Lowell Seventh-day Adventist Elementary School. One year later she officially became the school’s only teacher, at which point she continued her college education at New Mexico State University. It took almost eight years, teaching elementary school and even spending one year as girls’ dean at Sandia View Academy in Corrales, N.M., before she received her Bachelor’s degree, a teaching certificate, and ultimately, her Master’s degree.

From there, Bev and Sam moved to Seattle, Wash., where she became Associate Superintendent of Education for the Washington Conference, and later, the Upper Columbia Conference. A brief hiatus took her to La Sierra University in Southern California, where she received her Ed Specialist degree. They soon moved to Littleton, Colo., where Bev again took the role of associate superintendent.

Four years later, they moved to Syracuse, N.Y., where she served as superintendent. However, Union Springs Academy needed a principal, so she took on both jobs at the same time. All the way across country, she accepted her next challenge, working as Associate Director of the Pacific Union Education department, living in Oxnard, Calif. Bev finished her career in South Eastern Conference, Riverside, Calif.

With family living in the Phoenix, Ariz. area, Bev and Sam decided to retire and bought a house in Surprise, Ariz.

Beverly lived 77 years, serving the Lord through education, music and a kind, loving spirit.