Shirley A. Hartwell

Shirley Hartwell, age 86, of Columbia, Maryland passed away on May 25, 2021 at home surrounded by her close family. Born and raised in Baltimore, Maryland, she was the daughter of the late Bartholomew and Alice (Somerlock) Hartwell. She is survived by her longtime partner Tammy Borkowski; sister, Alice Kalamar and her husband Joe; sister, Joan Johnson and her husband Ken; several nieces; and many dear friends.

Shirley had a long and interesting life. She graduated from Towson College in 1957 with a degree in Education (minor in English) and began her teaching career. Initially she taught in Baltimore County at Carroll Manor Junior High, but soon transferred to Baltimore City where she taught high school, which she liked better. She taught at Edmonson High School where she sponsored the Drama Club and put on many fabulous productions. She later moved over to the prestigious Western High School. It was there that she sponsored the Black Cultures Club and invited the Black Panthers to come and speak.

In the early 1960s, Shirley was in the group that started Baltimore Center Stage. During rehearsals, she would sit in the back row to make sure the actor’s voices were loud enough and once the doors opened, she could often be found manning the Coat Room.

Shirley was most proud of her activism in the late 1960s when as part of the Activists, Inc. stopped unfair real estate practices, such as blockbusting and price gouging, in Baltimore.

In her early teaching career, Shirley attended many Graduate level seminars during the Summer. It was there she developed a love for the arts, including the ballet. She saw many wonderful productions, including A Portrait of the Artist as a Young Man at the Olney Theater, The Elixir of Love at the old Metropolitan Opera House in NYC, the National Ballet of Canada in Romeo and Juliet at the Carter Barron Amphitheater in DC and in Swan Lake at the Lyric Theater in Baltimore, the Threepenny Opera at Hopkins in Baltimore, Rosencrantz and Guildenstern Are Dead at the Kennedy Center in DC, Balanchine's Jewels in Saratoga NY, and the New York City Ballet in a number of ballets at the Post Pavilion in Columbia.

In the early 1970s, she left teaching to be one of the first women to repair machines for IBM. She drove from company to company in her VW Bug carrying a 40-pound tool bag and repairing key punch machines. In the mid-1980s, Shirley retired from IBM to finish her novel. Around this time, a collective formed and bought the 31st Bookstore in Waverly. Shirley applied and got the job as the Bookstore Manager. As an avid reader, this was a great fit and still allowed time for her to work on her novel Daughters of Galesia, which was eventually finished with several chapters being published in an anthology of women's writing. In the late 1980's, Shirley retired from the bookstore.

Shirley enjoyed many hobbies and activities. She loved lounging on the beach in OC MD, traveling to Key West, and going on family trips to Cancun. Shirley was very active in the Women’s Community and for many years published the Baltimore Women's Times, which contained personal interest articles and a calendar of women’s events. She was a member of OWLS and loved attending their events. She also managed the First Saturday mailing list and enjoyed attending the monthly potlucks. She loved attending the Women’s Writing Workshop in Ithaca NY and was a longtime member of the Word Dragon’s Writer’s Group.

In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the Maryland Food Bank.