Maria Randall Allen

Maria Randall Allen died peacefully at her home in Watertown on March 27, 2020 at the age of 96. She was the widow of Charles Brooker Allen, to whom she was married for 38 years. Maria was born on July 21, 1923, in Riverton, New Jersey, the only child of Henry LeRoy Randall of New Milford, Connecticut, and Elizabeth Troxell Randall of West Pittston, Pennsylvania. She graduated from Westover School and Sarah Lawrence College, and moved with her husband to Watertown in 1954.
Maria began volunteering at Westover School in 1947 and continued to serve her beloved alma mater for over 60 years. She worked in the Alumnae Office, served as the Director of Alumnae Affairs, and was the school’s first archivist. Maria was also a Life Member of the Board of Governors of the Alumnae Association. She won the Westover Award in 1986 and was the first recipient of an award named for her, The Maria Randall Allen Volunteer Service Award, in 1998. In recognition of her years of service as archivist, the Westover archives were named for her upon her retirement in 2011.
In Watertown, Maria served on the vestry of Christ Church and taught Sunday school there, and was active in local politics. She loved books and learning, and served as President of the Friends of the Watertown Library and Secretary of the Board of Trustees, and she was the volunteer librarian at Heminway Park School for 12 years. She was also an avid history buff, and in addition to her areas of passionate interest that included Westover School and the Civil War, she researched and documented an extensive treasure trove of family history, passing a brightly lit torch of love and memory to her daughter. 
Maria’s family have been summer residents on Lake Waramaug in Warren since 1898, and Maria loved the Lake dearly and was very much involved in the effort to preserve its health and beauty. She served on the Board of Directors of The Lake Waramaug Task Force for 6 years and on the Board of The Lake Waramaug Association for 35 years, and was instrumental throughout her life in documenting the Lake’s history.
She is survived by her daughter, Heather Allen; her daughter-in-law, Patricia Allen; her grandson, Geoffrey Allen, and his wife, Heidi; her granddaughter, Julia Allen Fields, and her husband, Eric; six great-grandchildren; and numerous nieces and nephews. In addition to her husband, who died in 1984, she was predeceased by her son, Henry Allen, who died in 1998, and her son-in-law, Alan Wiener, who died in 2008. 
Maria gave generously of herself and touched many lives with her loving heart and her luminous spirit. The world was graced and made better by her presence, and she will be greatly missed.
A memorial service will be held at a later date, and interment will be private at The Center Cemetery in New Milford. Both the Allen and the Randall families have deep roots in New Milford, and Maria will be laid to rest in the midst of many kin in a town she loved. In lieu of flowers, gifts in Maria’s memory may be made to Westover School or to the charity of one’s choice.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Maria Randall Allen, please visit our floral store.