Bessie Gove

BANGOR - Bessie H. “Bess” Gove, died October 19th, 2023, after a courageous battle with lung cancer at the age of 60. Bess’ boys, Jeremy and Joshua, were the light of her life. They were her greatest joy. She loved them fiercely and was incredibly proud of the men they had become. Bess was also known to be a mom to her sons’ friends and any other children in need she found along the way. She was a caretaker to all and quickly became the matriarch whether with her sorority sisters or crisis team colleagues.

Bess was born in Eastport, Maine on August 29th, 1963. She graduated from Shead High School in 1981 and the University of Maine, Presque Isle. She joined Kappa Delta Phi National Affiliated Sorority, Kappa Mu Chapter, where she quickly found a community of sisters, who became lifelong friends. If you knew Bess, you knew about her sisters. Spending time with them was something she looked forward to and the situations they found themselves in, were enough to bring you to tears through all of the laughter. Her sisters supported her to the very end.

Bess worked at Community Health and Counseling for over 20 years, as a mobile crisis worker and then supervisor, serving individuals and families struggling with mental illness, substance use, homelessness, and other hardships. She advocated for the most vulnerable and was deeply committed to her work. One of her greatest achievements was going back to school for her masters of social work (2019) and was proud to display her diploma.

Bess was preceded in death by her mother, Joyce, and her Nana, Ruth.

Bess is survived by her angelic, faultless, and highly-attractive sons, Jeremy Heath and his wife, Camila, of Portsmouth, New Hampshire and Joshua Heath, of Bangor, Maine- all traits inherited from their mother; her loving sister, Bobbie Clark and her husband, Richard, of Eastport, Maine; nieces, Allicia Mitchell, of Perry, Maine, and Brooke Porter, of Alexander, Maine; nephews, Tyler Mitchell and his wife, Kirby, of Waterville, Maine, Dana Mitchell and his wife, Monica, of Fort Fairfield, Maine, great-nieces, McKenna, Kinleigh, Hadley, Reese, Emersyn; and great-nephew, Colby; many cousins; her beloved cat with no name; many dear friends, colleagues and the innumerable people in our community she helped throughout her life; and the starting lineup of the Boston Celtics; who frustrated her to no end, which see saw fit to make clear to anyone who did or didn’t ask.
The beach was a place of solace for Bess. She found great peace there and we can trust she is now listening to the waves, feet in the warm sand, watching the wild horses with a cup of Captain's in-hand.

A Memorial Service will be held at 10:00 a.m., Sunday, October 29, 2023, at Brookings-Smith, 133 Center St., Bangor, followed by a procession across the Bangor-Brewer bridge, with a burial at 3:00 p.m., at Restlawn Cemetery in Perry, Maine. Those who wish to attend the service remotely may do so by visiting https://my.gather.app/fh/brookings-smith-funeral-home/family/bessie-gove.
Those who wish to remember Bess in a special way may make gifts in her memory to Reigning Hope Ranch by visiting https://www.reigninghoperanch.com/donate, or Community Health and Counseling, Attn: Executive Office, P.O. Box 425 Bangor, ME 04402-0425.

Condolences to the family may be expressed at BrookingsSmith.com.