Ilda Carreiro King, PhD died peacefully after a twenty-year journey with the ups and downs of breast cancer. In true Ilda fashion, she dictated the previous sentence to her daughters a week before her passing. She wanted to make it clear that she never felt like she “fought” breast cancer, or “battled” breast cancer, but that she made the most of living with it.

Ilda was the second daughter of Eugenio and Irene Carreiro, both Portuguese immigrants. She spent her childhood in a beloved apartment on Liberty Ave in Somerville making friends she remained close with throughout her life, and systematically reading through the entire children’s book collection at the library to prove to the staff she was ready for more challenging reads.

During her years at Lesley College as an Education major, she spent her free time with a group of friends that included high school classmate Jeffrey J. King. They hunted for snakes in their hip-boots, rode motorcycles around New England, and spent the weekends at Jeff’s family cottage in Barnard, VT. She and Jeff married in August of 1975 and moved to North Reading, MA.

Ilda raised her daughters, Brandy and Amberly, by giving them freedom to explore the world, encouraging their imaginations, and teaching them compassion for others. She enthusiastically fanned the flames that sparked their interests, leading to Amberly’s passion for child development and Brandy’s enthusiasm for librarianship.

Throughout their childhood she volunteered as a leader for both of their Girl Scout troops and raised money to support the North Reading Library. She also worked out of her basement office as an educational diagnostician and private tutor. She helped children overcome learning disabilities and go on to become adults who credit their success to her innovative, enthusiastic, and caring instruction.

Having developed a passion for enhancing student literacy, she pursued graduate education with the intent of effecting change on a larger scale. She earned her Masters Degree in Applied Child Development from Tufts University in 1994, followed by her Doctoral Degree in Developmental and Educational Psychology from Boston College in 1999.

In 1997 she started her own consulting business where she provided instruction to school administrators, special education departments, and classroom teachers on how to help all types of learners become fluent, strategic, and independent readers. For 23 years “Dr. Ilda” worked with school districts all over the state offering everything from program support for individual students to systemic district reform. In 2018 she was awarded the Sally K. Lenhardt Professional Leadership Award from Lesley College, which honors an alumna for leadership in education, human services, management, or the arts.

During the two decades she lived with cancer, Ilda proudly saw her daughters graduate from college, marry their high school sweethearts, and become parents. She and Jeffrey became grandparents to five grandchildren, currently ages 4 to 12. She loved having the grandkids sleep over at her home in North Reading and in a lake house in New Hampshire where she would eagerly play pretend with them, take them swimming, read them stories, and make big waffle breakfasts for the whole family.

She is survived by her husband Jeffrey King of North Reading; her daughter Brandy King, son-in-law Stephen Palumbo, and grandchildren Cameron and Ryan Palumbo of Wilmington, MA; her daughter Amberly Wood, son-in-law John Wood, grandchildren Kyle, Liara and April Wood, and their pup Tessa of Peabody, MA; her sister Margaret Carreiro of Louisville, KY; her sister Elaine Carreiro and brother-in-law Philip Morano of Medford, MA.

Ilda didn’t just touch people’s lives, she transformed them -- by volunteering, teaching, advocating, mentoring and above all, deeply loving her family, friends, colleagues, and students.  

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A celebration of Ilda's life will take place on Saturday, August 21, 2021 at 11 a.m. EDT.

There are two ways to attend:

1. Online: The service will be streamed live. This option is a wonderful way to participate if you are unvaccinated, have difficulty traveling, or are taking extra safety measures. We are happy to have you join us this way. 

--To watch the service on Saturday at 11am, click this link (https://bit.ly/ildaking ) and then select the video for Saturday August 21, 2021. 

--If you would like a memorial prayer card mailed to you, please write to brandy.king@gmail.com with your address.

2. In-person: 

Please wear colorful attire to match Ilda's vibrant energy!

Due to the ongoing pandemic, we will be taking precautions including:

--Encouraging only fully vaccinated individuals to attend.

--Being in a building with a high vaulted ceiling and open windows.

--Requiring all participants to be masked. Hand sanitizer and masks will be available at the door.

--For the safety of all, we have decided not to have a receiving line or to congregate as a group afterward.

Thank you for your understanding.

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