Beth Brizel (Summerfield)

Beth Brizel (Summerfield) was born in Boston, Massachusetts on June 23, 1954. She passed away peacefully on July 16, 2024, at Hillcrest Convalescent Center in Durham, North Carolina. 

 Beth’s life journey was characterized both by struggle and by resilience. At the age of one, Beth contracted polio during the 1955 epidemic of this disease and spent much of her childhood overcoming obstacles to learn to walk on her own. 

She attended Fisher Junior College and Lasell School of Nursing in Boston where she earned her degree. Beth met David Brizel, then a medical intern, in 1984 while working as a dialysis nurse at New England Deaconess Hospital. They were married in 1985 and moved to North Carolina in 1987 when David accepted a faculty position at Duke University Medical Center.  

Beth battled multiple sclerosis, a relentless adversary, for many decades. She never gave up and derived great pleasure from attending the annual MS Bike Tour in New Bern, NC. Beth found ways to be a caretaker long after her retirement from nursing and approached life with a creativity and resourcefulness that lives on in her daughters. She loved listening to music and enjoyed knitting, caring for orchids and spending time with the family dogs. 

Beth is survived by her husband, David, of Durham, NC; her beloved daughters, Marla (Jay) of Denver, CO, and Lauren of Portland, OR; and granddaughter Naomi, of whom she was very proud. She is also survived by a sister, Bonnie. She was preceded in death by her beloved parents, Robert and Mildred, and treasured grandparents, Benjamin and Beatrice Chase. 

A memorial service in loving memory of Beth will be held at Judea Reform Cemetery in Chapel Hill on August 25, 2024, at 10:30 am. In lieu of flowers, the family requests that donations be made to the National Multiple Sclerosis Society in her memory. https://www.nationalmssociety.org