CHARLTON, Mass. - Vanessa Joan Brown, formerly of Castine and Bucksport, passed away Nov. 28, 2009, with her family by her side, in Worcester, Mass. Vanessa was born Nov. 5, 1956, in Castine. Vanessa was a vibrant, spirited, extremely gracious, yet determined woman whose personality drew many friends to her throughout her too brief life. Her large extended family and all of her friends, including her six lifelong friends from Maine, will miss her and that wonderfully infectious laugh. Vanessa grew up in Bucksport, where she spent summers swimming in the lakes, raking blueberries and exploring with her many friends. She graduated from Bucksport High School in 1975, where a guidance counselor once told her that she could expect to work in a local sweater factory for minimum wage. Instead she earned an associate degree in animal science from the University of Maine, Orono. Soon thereafter she moved to Worcester, Mass., and started working on her bachelor's degree at Worcester State College. When she finished that, she went on to earn a master's degree in health education. At the age of 23, she and a friend spent three months driving across the U.S. They saw many famous and obscure corners of the country and kept many wonderful memories of the trip. After moving to Charlton, Mass., she served as president of Charlton Garden Club for several years and was a member of the Rider Tavern Committee. She worked at the University of Massachusetts-Memorial Medical Center for 25 years, most recently in the position of manager of the Institutional Research Board. While at the University of Massachusetts, she earned the respect, admiration and love of many colleagues, including doctors, department chairs, distinguished researchers and many other professionals. Vanessa accomplished many things in many areas, but she never did get around to working in that sweater factory. In addition to her husband of 23 years, Mike Perkins; daughter, Astra; and son, Taylor, she leaves her father, Merton Brown and his wife, Claire, of Brewer; her brother, Keith and his son, Jason, also of Brewer; and her close cousin, Andrea Veazey. She also leaves an extended family of many aunts, uncles, cousins and other family members in Maine, Florida and California. She was predeceased by her mother, Eloise Gott; and by brothers, Leslie and Terry many years ago. The family thanks Lucie Lajeunesse and the staff at Rose Monahan Hospice Home for their loving care and support. Friends and relatives are invited to visit with the family 5-8 p.m. Tuesday, Dec. 1, at Mercadante Funeral Home & Chapel, 370 Plantation St., Worcester, Mass. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Rose Monahan Hospice, care of VNA Hospice, 120 Thomas St., Worcester, MA 01608, the ;(function() { var adKeyValue = 't='; adKeyValue+= escape('clio=ACS'); adKeyValue += escape('&cobrand=bdnmaine'); adKeyValue += escape('&linktext=American Cancer Society'); adKeyValue += escape('&linkurl=https://www.cancer.org/involved/donate/donateonlinenow/Legacy/index?dn=mem&fn=Vanessa&ln=Brown'); adKeyValue += escape('&fn=Vanessa'); adKeyValue += escape('&ln=Brown'); var adClkUrl = 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/jump?iu=/423686928/prod/obit-aff/obit-standard/clio-inline-1&' + adKeyValue + '&sz=1x1&c=508040497'; var adImpUrl = 'http://pubads.g.doubleclick.net/gampad/ad?iu=/423686928/prod/obit-aff/obit-standard/clio-inline-1&' + adKeyValue + '&sz=1x1&c=508040497'; document.write("<a href='" + adClkUrl + "' target=_blank>American Cancer Society<" + 'img' + " src='" + adImpUrl + "' style='width=1px; height=1px; display:inline;' /></a>"); }());, 350 Plantation St., Worcester, MA 01604 and Charlton Public Library, 40 Main St., Charlton, MA 01507. A graveside service will be held in the spring in Orland.