BRAINTREE -- When Helen Blinstrub, former principal of St. Mary of the Annunciation School in Melrose, was in the hospital, a group of volunteers was organized to maintain the gardens outside her home. "Miss B.," as everyone called her, was not concerned about her house's appearance. She wanted the garden taken care of because she knew it would make her neighbors happy. To those who knew "Miss B.," that was how she lived -- taking care of others without fanfare. When the two-year-old brother of Michael Greski, one of her students, was hospitalized with leukemia, she quietly directed the school community to make meals for the family.

"It was a modest and discreet effort that she personally undertook, but that was her way," Greski said. "I know she performed many unsung deeds for numerous children and families who endured hardships."

Those deeds won't be unsung anymore. Blinstrub, who died in 2025 at age 75, was memorialized with a bench in her honor, installed at Mary Foley Park in Melrose on Jan. 3. The bench is located under a tree in the park, a popular hangout for St. Mary's students. The campaign to pay for the bench, organized by families associated with St. Mary's, raised so much money that an additional $2,248.01 was donated to the Catholic Schools Foundation in Blinstrub's name. That money will go toward scholarships for Catholic school students.

"Educators like Miss B. dedicate their lives to serving students and families, and it's inspiring to see a community come together to honor that commitment," said CSF Executive Director Mike Reardon. "We are deeply grateful for this generosity, which will help continue access to Catholic education for students in need."

Beth Flynn got to know "Miss B." when her five children were enrolled at St. Mary's.

"She was gentle and kind and the kids loved her," she said.

She would often sit down and eat bologna sandwiches with her students in the lunchroom. At the end of the school year, she would give every student a handwritten card with the words "You are special."

"It was a perfect tribute to the woman whose kind, faithful ways impacted our families and community," Flynn said of the memorial bench.

Greski remembered Blinstrub as "a formidable woman" and "an absolute pillar to St. Mary's School and the surrounding community."

"She meant it when she said 'You are special' to her students and as adults that she was proud of the men and women we had become," he said.

He added: "I feel a deep sense of gratitude for everything Miss B. did for my family and I, and it is befitting that she be remembered in a place where her spirit is ever present and will be enjoyed by the community that she so greatly impacted."