Elizabeth Ann (Shillaber) (Brown) Coleman, formerly from Newburyport, Massachusetts, passed away at age 92 on Monday the 18th of January, 2021 in Palm Bay, Florida. ‘Betty’ as she was better known was from 20 Forrester Street, Newburyport and was a daughter of the late Eleanor Colby (Smith) Shillaber of Littleton, Grafton, New Hampshire and the late John James Shillaber of Portsmouth, New Hampshire. Betty was born on the 2nd of August 1928. She was the oldest of four children in her family having two younger brothers Russell Shillaber of Rochester, New Hampshire and Robert Shillaber of Wickford, Rhode Island, and a younger sister Carolyn (Shillaber) Patterson of Epson, New Hampshire, Carolyn Patterson, (deceased). During Betty’s early years growing up in Newburyport she wishes to be remembered for her love of nature, all animals, camping, playing with her brothers and other neighborhood children, and babysitting. Betty graduated Newburyport High School in 1947 and continued her education at Kents Hill Jr. College in Kents Hill, Maine. At the age of 21 in 1949 Betty married Robert Arold Brown, also known as “Bob,” who too was a native of Newburyport. It was during the 50’s in Newburyport that Betty and Bob Brown had 5 children: Susan Jean (Brown) (Reed) Moulton, (deceased), William Arold Brown of San Diego, California, Richard Lawrence Brown of Salisbury, Massachusetts, Elizabeth Anne (Brown) Green of Haymarket, Virginia, and Karen Lee (Brown) (Cahoon) Clark of Santa Monica, California.
Betty was incredibly involved with her family and her children kept her quite busy earlier in life. Betty and Bob were consistent annual Summer campers at Sandy Point, Plum Island. Betty is also well remembered for her baking, gardening, snow shoveling, canning, swimming, and you name it skills. She could do it all! Later in her life Betty became interested in “The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints” and in 1962 she converted and became a “Mormon.” Several years later Betty divorced her husband of twenty-two years, and very soon thereafter departed Newburyport with her two youngest daughters to Florida. Betty later remarried on 14 Nov. 1972 to Thomas Milton Coleman, aka “TOM.” Tom Coleman was also from Newburyport. Betty and Tom had mutually made an eternal marriage commitment to one another in their church, The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints. On 23 Dec. 2001 Tom passed away quite suddenly and proceeded Betty by about 19 years to their next destination. Betty and Tom had been living in Palm Bay, Florida where Betty remained living independently until late surrounded by her family. Betty was quite involved in genealogy and leaves behind her research notes regarding her paternal Shillaber ancestors back to 1688 in Devon, England. Her son William has a copy of some of those notes as does her church genealogy library.
In addition to her five children, Betty had 14 grandchildren, 23 great grandchildren, and one 3-year-old great great grandchild, Bjorn Maximiliano Reed Sanchez, born 2018.
Betty’s wishes included requests for donations be made to “any” animal shelters.
Betty might quite likely have agreed with Will Rogers when he was once quoted, “If there are no dogs in Heaven, then when I die, I want to go where they went.”
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