Lucille Beth Bearon

Lucille Beth Bearon of Durham passed away peacefully on October 21, 2025 at the age of 74. Luci was born in Quincy, Massachusetts, but had called Durham home since 1974. Luci was a loving wife, adoring mother, and caring friend. She was a distinguished gerontologist and a champion for older adults for more than 50 years.

She and her husband, Alan, were partners for 48 years. They enjoyed traveling and even lived in Japan for a few months. Luci also got great joy from being a mother and a friend to her daughter, Sarah Jane, who enjoyed accompanying her to everything from workshops to college reunions. Luci’s love for words made her excellent at crossword puzzles, and friends and family can attest that she knew the lyrics to every rock and roll song.

She received a BA in sociology from Wellesley College in 1972 and an MA in sociology from the University of Pennsylvania in 1973. She earned her PhD in sociology in 1982 from Duke University in conjunction with its Center for the Study of Aging and Human Development.

Luci went on to work for the Geriatric Research, Education, and Clinical Center at the Veteran Affairs Medical Center in Durham. She taught courses on aging at Norfolk State University, North Carolina Central University, Elon University, Meredith College, and ultimately North Carolina State University, where she worked for twenty four years. At NC State, she was the Adult Development and Aging Specialist for the North Carolina Cooperative Extension, where she enjoyed working with Extension agents across the state to develop and deliver curriculum to their communities. Among her many accomplishments, she was especially proud of receiving the Applied Gerontologist Award and the Gordon Streib Distinguished Academic Gerontologist Award from the Southern Gerontological Society and serving on the Governor’s Advisory Council on Aging.

Luci’s inquisitiveness, empathy, and good sense of humor made her an excellent researcher and educator. She was a pioneer in the field of positive aging. She helped to develop programs like “Aging with Gusto!” that encourage people to question their own negative assumptions about later life. She was also an expert on the topics of grandparents raising grandchildren and family caregiving.

Communication was challenging in the last years of her life. She developed Primary Progressive Aphasia, a neurodegenerative disease that impairs language abilities. Despite her diagnosis, she was always a beacon of positivity for those around her, even into her last days.

She is preceded in death by her parents, Muriel and Israel Bearon, and her brother Arthur Bearon.

She is survived by her husband Alan Huber, daughter Sarah Jane Huber, and son-in-law Daniel Spritz.

A celebration of her life will be held on Sunday, November 16, 2:00 - 4:00 PM at the Seymour Senior Center, 2551 Homestead Road, Chapel Hill, NC 27516. Please join us for light refreshments and to share stories about Luci. We plan to offer a virtual option too. Check back here for more information.

In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Luci’s memory to organizations that were important to her:

- The Aphasia Project: https://www.aphasiaproject.org/donate/ 

- Southern Gerontological Society: https://www.zeffy.com/en-US/donation-form/sgs-student-and-older-adult-scholarships