Pearl (Millman) Gambell

Pearl Celia Millman was born on May 17, 1926 in Lowell to Leo Millman and Yvonne Vayo Millman. Young Pearl, her parents and her three brothers lived with Pearl’s mother’s parents (Ernest Elias Vayo and Virginia Nault) at the time. We laughed at her story about the vegetable garden in their backyard where Pearl told of loving the tomatoes so much that she would bring a salt shaker out into the garden and eat them all, leaving her poor grandmother to complain that she could never find a ripe one.

Pearl left school to go to work during the war eventually training for a job at Sturtevant Mill Company. Perhaps it was not her calling as she joked that she was so slow there was always a big line behind her. Fortunately, fate had something else in store for Pearl there, an older man named John Gambell. Pearl said she did not remember how they first started dating, but it wasn't long before she knew he was the one. Pearl married the love of her life, John Gambell, on November 25, 1944.

Pearl often said that all she ever wanted in life was to be a mother and she certainly achieved that goal starting with her five children. She is survived by her son, John and his partner Rachel Pike, Janet and her husband Dean Woods, Jim and his wife Mary, Jill and her husband Andy Estabrooks, and Jeff and his wife Corrine.  She also leaves behind her grandchildren Tracy, Sandra, Kristin,  Ryan, Renee, Jay, Yvonne, Zoe, Ana, and Briana. Finally, with the birth of Renee's daughter Eve, and Sandra's son Donovan Pearl was able to achieve great-grandmother status. In addition to all this family, Pearl was also known to informally adopt several  people into her family over the years.

Pearl not only fulfilled her goal in quantity, but also in quality, proving to be the consummate mother, grandmother and great-grandmother.

Pearl left to join her beloved John on June 15th at the age of 91 years.

She leaves behind a legacy of love and kindness which will be missed dearly by those of us who were fortunate enough to have her in our life.

Visitation on Tuesday (June 27, 2017) from 4-6 PM in the Quealy & Son Funeral Home, 116 Adams Street, Abington. 

 Service Information