August 2019
Bertha (Laine) Bartlett (died in August 2019) lived in Wareham for most of her life. She was the youngest of 12 children. She married the first male nurse at the newly opened Tobey Hospital, and raised her 3 children in Wareham.
Bertha joined the Wareham Garden Club in 1975. She held various positions in the club: landscape design, good cheer, nominating and civic planting. She loved flower arranging and crafting with pine cones and sea shells. She continued her love of gardening throughout her life.
Bertha wore many hats over the years. She started working at age 7. She was a hairdresser, housekeeper, clerk, gardener, child care provider, and gas station attendant, just to name a few. She started life in a time when things were much simpler yet difficult. She lived through kerosene lamps to LED bulbs, cars without rear windows or heat to luxury cars, outhouses to lavish spas, and never imagined all of the electronics of today.