Mrs. Kimberley A. Hand

ATTLEBORO — Kimberley A. (Abbott) Hand, 50, the mother of Kaileen and Karissa Hand, died Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2013, after a long battle with cancer.

Kim was the wife of James Hand of Attleboro and the daughter of Jeanette Lukaszewski and her husband Ted of North Providence, and Arnold Abbott and his wife Marie of The Villages, Fla. She was the sister of James Abbott of Higganum, Conn.

Born in Central Falls, she grew up in Pawtucket and Coventry, R.I., but for the past 25 years has made her home in Attleboro, where she volunteered in the schools and taught religious classes. She was known for playing her guitar and singing to her CCD students.

Despite being told by doctors that she had no risk factors for cancer, Kim, who never smoked, was diagnosed with lung cancer in July 2011.

Rather than feel sorry for herself, she fought the disease with courage, and endured unspeakable pain with a dignity that awed her friends and family. Instead of complaining, she would joke that chemotherapy gave her an excuse to drink more vanilla frappes. Her battle moved her to write a popular blog on the Caring Bridge website that won a wide audience of admirers. Her uplifting speech last spring was a highlight of the National Cancer Survivors’ Day activities in Attleboro.

“I have learned many lessons since this all began,” she told the group.

“I am stronger and more capable than I ever imagined. Human kindness is a gift like no other. Humility allows me to accept and forgive. Being sick does not give me the right to be thoughtless. Prayer does work. I have come to understand that the love we give to others trumps all negative emotions and experiences. Because we love, we are complete. This is true even if disease robs us of our memories, parts of our bodies, or even our lives.”

She was the inspiration for the creation by her daughter Karissa of a cancer awareness club at Attleboro High School called Answer for Cancer. Many students at the school Wednesday wore cancer awareness T-shirts in her honor.

Before becoming sick, Kim was a teacher, specializing in the Montessori method. She would become so expert in the method that she would give seminars to other teachers. She worked at Bay Farm Montessori Academy in Duxbury, Hands On Montessori School in Mansfield, and Summit Montessori School in Framingham. Her students went on field trips with her to places such as Jamestown, Va., the United Nations, and Washington, D.C.

Before becoming a teacher, Kim was an accomplished journalist, working at radio and cable television stations throughout the region, including WOON in Woonsocket, and WARA in Attleboro. She was also a reporter for the former Inland Bay cable company in Attleboro. It was while covering Attleboro City Council meetings that she met her future husband Jim, a reporter for The Sun Chronicle. Her acclaim as a journalist included winning an ACE cable award for a documentary that she produced about Civil War re-enactors.

Kim got her start in journalism at “The Good Five Cent Cigar,” a student newspaper at the University of Rhode Island. At the paper she worked with the likes of John King, who is now a political commentator at CNN.

But, despite all her professional success, her daughters were the center of her life. She called them the light of her life. She encouraged them to travel, explore new ideas, and to always give their best effort. She instilled in them a love of learning and reading. Stories about Kaileen’s college semester in France and Karissa’s accomplishments at Attleboro High School lifted her on the worst of her days.

Throughout the years, Kim was a familiar sight at Attleboro youth events and sports, supporting her girls, while standing out in the crowd with her light blonde hair.

She is survived by a large family. In addition to her husband and daughters, survivors include her mother-in-law, mother Gertrude Hand of Norwood; Joan Abbott of Higganum, Conn.; Virginia and William Pittsley of Portsmouth, R.I.; Patricia and Jack Adelmann of Plymouth; Donna and David Celuzza of Lunenburg; Eleanor and Bob Reilly of Needham; Edward and Beth Hand of Clarence, N.Y.; Susan Hand of Norwood; Thomas Hand and Cara Meringolo of Boston; Kathryn and Mark Savage of Norwood, and Kelley Hand of Boston.

She is also survived by many aunts, uncles, nieces, nephews, and cousins.

In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to the Answer for Cancer Club. Checks should be made out to Attleboro High School, with Answer for Cancer written in the memo line.