Mary E. Paiva

Mary E. (Salois) Paiva, 73, of Portsmouth, passed away on October 12, 2022. She was the wife of James Paiva.

Born in Fall River, MA, she was the daughter of the late Wilfred and Catherine (Flynn) Salois.
Mary's first love was her family. Her most joyful times were spent surrounded by her children and grandchildren. She was selfless and had a generous spirit, always encouraging and complimentary. She was a devoted wife, a loving sister and a doting mother and grandmother.
Being an extremely active woman, she never turned down a walk on the beach or a hike up the mountain with her family and friends.

Mary worked in the Portsmouth school system for many years as a secretary and as a special education aide. After retirement, she was very involved with volunteer work at the local shelter, feeding the homeless, and at St. Barnabas church working to keep the flowers and the church grounds beautiful. All throughout, she was an avid artist who enjoyed painting and creating works with all types of media.
Mary leaves her husband James and their children Dr. Tobias Paiva, and his wife Susan of Auburn, CA, Dr. Amy Paiva Hursh and her husband David of Pittsburgh, PA and Nicholas Paiva and his partner Glenn, of Covington, LA.

She was a loving grandmother to Mia Hursh, Jack Hursh, Nate Paiva, and Luke Paiva, and sister of Robert Salois and his wife Dianne of Malden, MA and Ann DeFosse and her husband Donald of Shrewsbury, MA.

A Memorial Mass will be celebrated on Wednesday, October 19th at 10:00 am in St. Barnabas Church, 1697 East Main Road, Portsmouth, RI and will be followed by a private burial.