M. Theresa Santos was mourned and celebrated Monday night by her colleagues on the #MiddletownRI Town Council. Santos was 88 years old when she passed on May 27.
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CONTACT: Matt Sheley at (401) 842-6543 or msheley@middletownri.com
SANTOS MOURNED, CELEBRATED
MIDDLETOWN, R.I. (JUNE 5, 2023) – Town Councilwoman M. Theresa Santos was mourned and celebrated Monday night.
During a meeting from Town Hall, council members each expressed sadness and sorrow that their friend and colleague “Mrs. S” was gone and would not be joining them again to help improve Middletown.
To honor Santos and her contributions to the community, all Middletown flags remain at half mast. Each of the council members also wore their white “Santos Slayers” teeshirts from a dodgeball tournament in March, a tribute to their late colleague, who passed on May 27.
Local resident Carol Cummings bought two pink hydrangeas to plant outside Town Hall in Santos’ honor. The town also displayed flowers in the council chambers.
Funeral services for Santos will be private. Anyone looking to give in her name is asked to contribute to the Middletown Rescue Wagon Fund, 239 Wyatt Road, Middletown, RI 02842.
“We lost a colleague, we lost a friend, we lost a mentor,” council President Paul M. Rodrigues said. “M. Theresa Santos. We all called her Mrs. S…Certainly, she’ll be missed. We miss her already. It came as a shock to most of us, which makes it even tougher.”
Although Santos is best known recently for her work from the council dais, her time with the town dated back decades.
Santos started working in Town Hall in 1966 and continued until 1990, when she retired from the town’s finance office. First elected to the council in 2000, Santos served on the town’s top elected body for more than two decades.
As each of the council members spoke, it was clear there was a respect and admiration for Santos.
Councilman Peter Connerton said he had been looking forward to meeting with Santos, who had promised to teach him the right way to prepare chourico with peppers and onions.
“I was really just starting to getting to know Mrs. S and it’s really hard to believe she’s gone…” Connerton said. “I think to a lot of people, she seemed to be stuck in the days of old. That was just her loving Middletown the way it was.”
Council Vice President Thomas Welch said he remembered sitting down with Santos for breakfast five or six months after he was first elected and answering her questions. And while they didn’t always see eye to eye on every issue, Welch said a mutual respect was born.
“She loved Middletown the way it was and that she had it in her mind that she was going to try to keep it that way to the best of her ability,” Welch said. “If it couldn’t be everything she wanted, it would at least still be a great place to live and a great place to raise a family. I tried to keep that in mind, no matter what we talk about, that will be in the back of my head.”
Councilman Christopher Logan said he had the honor of sitting next to Santos during meetings — and learning from her throughout. One of his fondest memories serving the community was receiving a phone call from Santos on Election night in November 2022, wishing him well and congratulating him for his election.
“She was a wonderful, wonderful woman…” Logan said. “(Her) selflessness, to give over 20 years in this role, that’s a lot, especially when you start at 68 (years old)… Caring and kindhearted. She had a wit about herself and she always cared. What she said mattered.”
Councilwoman Emily Tessier said she was getting to know Santos and she was sorry she was gone.
“Right off the bat, I could tell she loved Middletown,” Tessier said. “She was incredibly smart and so witty.”
Toward the end of the meeting, council members agreed to have town staff ask former Councilwoman Barbara A. VonVillas to serve on the town’s top elected body again, if she’s interested.
Per section 209 of the Town Charter, the council must make an appointment to fill Santos’ seat, which will be opened again during the next regularly scheduled election in November 2024.
VonVillas was on the council for years and missed serving again by 11 votes. The next highest vote getter was Antone Viveiros, who trailed Councilman Dennis Turano by more than 600 votes.
The council is expected to address the item at its next meeting on June 19 at 6:30 pm in Town Hall.
Document Link: https://www.middletownri.com/DocumentCenter/View/8842/NYCU-Santos