Esther A. (Tashjian) Fenerjian

 Esther A. (Tashjian) Fenerjian Of Arlington, aged 97, Esther passed away on December 12, 2022. 

Born in Boston on April 25, 1925 to Mary S. (Melkonian) and Sarkis G. Tashjian, who emigrated from the cities of Amasya and Kharpert, respectively, in the historic Armenian homeland, she was raised in Stoneham along with her brother, George E. Tashjian, late of Lansing, IL.  Adored wife of the late Oscar Fenerjian, Esther was the cherished mother of their daughter, Maryanne, of Arlington, who survives her and whom she raised as a single mother, having been widowed after only 17 months of marriage.  Esther also is survived by nieces Marybelle Schmidt, Susan Salinas, Elizabeth Tashjian, Laura MacDonald and Janace Tashjian, each of California, Janet Hollingsworth of Indiana, and their families, as well as by numerous loving cousins and friends to whom she was as close as if they, too, were her nieces and nephews. 

A graduate of Stoneham High School and of the Malden Business School, Esther worked as a secretary and an executive assistant, first in the publishing and electronics industries, later in higher education, finishing her career as a research administrator at Harvard University.  A glorious soprano and talented seamstress, Esther sang professionally from a young age, often in evening gowns of her own creation, but her proudest musical moments were as a volunteer with the U.S.O. and the Red Cross, singing at military bases and hospitals throughout the Northeast during World War II. 

She was active in the Order of the Eastern Star, in which she held numerous offices and was awarded life membership.  She loved travel, sports, the arts and the majestic, restless ocean.  Esther will be remembered as warm, humorous, candid to a fault, fiercely loyal and, most of all, as a strong, loving and devoted mother to the very end of her days. 

Visiting hours will be on Monday, December 19, from 2:00 to 4:00 pm and 6:00 to 8:00 pm at the Barile Family Funeral Home, 482 Main Street, Stoneham. Parking attendants and elevator available. 

Funeral services will be at Holy Trinity Armenian Church, 145 Brattle Street, Cambridge (attendees should go directly to the church) at 11:00 a.m. on Tuesday, December 20, followed by burial at Lindenwood Cemetery, Montvale Avenue, Stoneham. 

Memorial donations in lieu of flowers may be made to Holy Trinity Armenian Church (https://htaac.org/get-involved/donations/) or to the Shriners Hospitals for Children, 51 Blossom Street, Boston, MA  02114 (https://lovetotherescue.org/).