Southbridge: Roxanne L. Allen, 68, passed away on October 22nd surrounded by family after battling a long illness. Roxanne was born in Southbridge, daughter of Mansfield and her beloved mom, Lucy (Suitter) Allen. She leaves her beloved son, Andy Allen, sisters, Darlene Allen, Pamela Aucoin, her husband Ronald and former brother-in-law Clifford Szczypien with whom she shared a special connection. She leaves nieces, Penny Cote, Kim Szczypien-Morse and Heather Aucoin and nephews, Louie Ferraro, Ronnie Aucoin, Jr., Timmy Aucoin, Tony Aucoin, Jeff Szczypien and Chad Szczypien, who she shared a special bond with. She also leaves several great nieces and nephews.

Roxanne was predeceased by her beloved sister, Verna Ferraro and her brother Joseph Allen.

Roxanne attended Marian Hill High School. She started out as a waitress at Mandeville's Restaurant in Sturbridge and other various places, Steven's Automatic Sales, The Center of Hope, where she made long lasting friendships. She had a heart of gold and was always reaching out to those she loved and even to strangers. She was a generous soul and would help anyone in need, even if that meant coming up short for herself and her son. She had a renewed relationship with Jesus in recent years. She knew that they would be ok by the grace of God. Her faith never wavered but more importantly, she would pass that faith along to her son. She was happy to shout out her love for Jesus to the world every day. Her son was always her focus from day one. She would go to the ends of the Earth for him, and she would let everyone know it. Her heart of gold did not stop at people. She also had a love for animals that God created as well. Feeding and saving the feral cats from stormy winters and buying food for the squirrels and birds became part of their daily routine. Roxie loved going to the casino. She would enjoy those times with her son, her sister, Verna and her niece, Penny. It was always a great day spent together. She found great excitement in the lottery tickets that Andy would bring her as well. Roxie also loved to sing. She had quite an amazing voice! She enjoyed a lot of different genres of music and was an amazing dancer as well. She was definitely an enthusiastic conversationalist to say the least. She would always have you engaged in her stories…saying "listen…listen…" and we would definitely listen intently. In any given hysterical moment, she could have sent you off your seat laughing uncontrollably. She was an amazing one-of-a-kind kinda girl. She enjoyed her late-night visits when she, Darlene and Pam would go visit their sister Verna at her home. They would talk for hours and laugh until the wee hours of the morning. She had a small circle of friends, but they were very important to her, and she considered them family. She always kept them close to her heart no matter whether she grew up with them or met them along the way, she held them dear and cherished that bond Among her close friends were Caryl, Brenda, Terry, Donna and Jackie. Roxie was, no question about it, the strongest woman you would ever meet. She absolutely loved living on the edge. Living on the edge was her thrill and she wouldn't have it any other way. Her friends and family will miss her uniqueness beyond all words possible. She will be bringing laughter and a new light into Heaven. She will be met with open arms by her beloved mother and sister Verna among so many more. All I can say is hold onto your seats.

A funeral Mass for Roxanne will be held on Thursday, Nov. 7th, at 6:00pm in St. Mary's Church of the St. John Paul II Parish, 263 Hamilton St., Southbridge.  Burial will be held at the convenience of the family.  There are no calling hours.

The Daniel T. Morrill Funeral Home, 130 Hamilton St., Southbridge, is directing arrangements.