Alice A. Olender, 97, of Great Barrington, died Monday April 14, 2025, at Fairview Commons in Great Barrington. She was born in Great Barrington on March 16, 1928, the daughter of Ignatius and Sophia (Bazonski) Badurski. She was educated in local schools and attended the former Searles High School.
Alice worked in the weave shop at Monument Mills, in the housekeeping department at Willowood Nursing Home, and as a garment inspector for Reid Cleaners. She was a communicant of Saint Peter’s Church in Great Barrington and the former All Saint’s Church in Housatonic and was a member of the Rosary Sodality and an auxiliary member of the Adams-Budz VFW in Housatonic. She enjoyed bingo, playing poker, and many activities at the Senior Center.
Alice’s husband Stanley J. “Tobey” Olender, whom she married on September 20, 1947, predeceased her on September 20, 1983. Alice is survived by her two daughters, Barbara Benham of Housatonic and Patricia Olender of Omaha, Neb.; her three grandchildren, David Benham Jr., Kimberly Wood, and Shawn Benham; and her seven great-grandchildren, Matthew and Lexi Benham, Emily and Brady Wood, and Anna, Hattie, and Evie Benham. In addition to her husband, Alice was predeceased by her six brothers, Joseph, John, Henry, Thomas, Franky, and Steven, and her three sisters, Regina Dacey, Mary Boris, and Helen Badurski.
A graveside service will be held for Alice at a later time. In lieu of flowers, expressions of sympathy in Alice’s memory may be made to the Claire Teague Senior Center in care of the Birches-Roy Funeral Home, 33 South St., Great Barrington, MA 01230. Condolences may be made through the funeral home’s website.
