Anita Kerbeshian McPherson, 69, of Orange, CT, formerly Watertown, MA, beloved wife of Craig A. McPherson, MD, passed away suddenly (of a ruptured aortic aneurysm) while skiing with her family on Thursday, February 22, 2018.  Born on July 12, 1948 in Cambridge, MA, she was the daughter of the late Jacob and Mary Marderosian Kerbeshian.  

Anita was a graduate of Watertown High School and received her A.B. degree, cum laude, from Radcliffe College at Harvard University. After obtaining her Masters in Social Work from Simmons College, she began her professional career as a Psychiatric Social Worker at St. Elizabeth’s Hospital in Boston, MA. She and her husband married in May of 1976 and moved to Connecticut in 1980, eventually settling in Orange from 1984 until her death. Throughout her life in Connecticut, she devoted much of her time to a busy private practice in counseling and psychotherapy, with offices in New Haven, Hamden, and Milford, and the raising of her family. She and her family were active members of the Orange Congregational Church, United Church of Christ; – she served on many of the congregation’s boards and committees.

She is survived by her husband, who is a cardiologist at Bridgeport Hospital and Yale University School of Medicine; two daughters, Marianne McPherson, PhD, of Somerville, MA, and Christina McPherson, Certified Nurse-Midwife, of New York, NY; her son-in-law, Damon Sidel, M.Arch., of Somerville, MA and Christina’s partner Michael Seaman, DO, of New York, NY; two grandchildren, Linnaea and Holden McPherson Sidel of Somerville, MA; a brother and sister-in-law, Jacob Kerbeshian, MD and Lynn Kerbeshian, JD, of Medina, MN; a sister-in-law, Laura McPherson, MSW, of Milford; three nieces, Marie Kerbeshian, PhD, of Iowa City, IA, Neva Kerbeshian Novarro, PhD, of Huntington Beach, CA, and Sarah Kerbeshian Sorenson, JD, of Plymouth, MN; two nephews, Jack Kerbeshian, FSA, of Plymouth, MN and David (McPherson) Weinreich, MBA, of Boston, MA; five grandnieces; five grandnephews; and many dear friends including the Rev. Dr. Marian Williams of Medford, MA. She was predeceased by her parents-in-law, Lester and Gloria McPherson, of Fairfield; her grandnephew, Luke Tyler Kerbeshian, of Plymouth, MN; and her dear friend Steven Williams, PhD, of Medford, MA.

A Funeral Service will be celebrated on Thursday, March 1, 2018, at 11:00 AM at Orange Congregational Church, UCC, 205 Meetinghouse Ln., Orange, CT, 06477 (MEET DIRECTLY AT CHURCH). Interment will follow at Orange Center Cemetery, Orange Center Road, Orange, CT, 06477. Friends and family may call from 4:00 to 8:00 p.m. on Wednesday, February 28, 2018 at the CODY-WHITE FUNERAL HOME, 107 Broad St., Milford, CT 06460. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to the Orange Congregational Church, UCC, The Birth Sanctuary, or the Neighborhood Music School.

To learn more about the work of these organizations and their connection to Anita's life and legacy, visit  https://anitamcpherson.com.