Whately, MA – After a three-year battle with brain cancer, Maida Goodwin passed away peacefully at Hospice of the Fisher Home in Amherst, Massachusetts. She was predeceased by parents George and Ellen Goodwin.
Maida spent her childhood in Amherst, Wickford, RI, and Newton, MA. As an adult, she returned to the Pioneer Valley, graduated from Smith College, then settled in Northampton, Northfield, and finally, Whately.
After graduation, Maida worked at The Sophia Smith Collection of Women’s History, curating collections, creating exhibits, and assisting students, faculty, and historians with research. She received a Master’s Degree in horticulture from UMASS, then worked as a gardener and farmer, retiring from Whately’s Quonquont Farm in 2025.
Maida is survived by sisters Alice Goodwin-Brown (partner, Ross Goodwin-Brown), Emily Goodwin (partner Carlos Varela), brothers Putnam Goodwin-Boyd (partner Kathy Goodwin-Boyd), Will Goodwin, nieces Hannah Goodwin-Brown (partner Laura Fabricant), Vera Goodwin-Brown, Grace Goodwin-Boyd; nephews Samuel Goodwin-Boyd (partner Anja Goodwin-Boyd), Zachary Goodwin (partner Alex Goodwin) and one great-niece, Rose Goodwin-Boyd.
Maida’s family, friends, colleagues, and neighbors will sorely miss her many, varied skills, independent spirit, wry sense of humor, love of history, and her astonishing ability to recall the Latin names of any plant she ever encountered.
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