Shirley T Stewart

She was born on September 30, 1921 in South Portland, the daughter of Leonard S. and Isabel Golden Thompson. She lived in the Greater Portland area all her life.

She graduated from South Portland High School in the class of 1939 and Caston Business College. She later attended Maine School of Commerce and took several special courses at the University of Maine in Portland. In 1936, she was awarded the Good Citizenship medal by the Sons of the American Revolution.

Her first job was medical secretary to Dr. Benjamin Zolov which was followed by a 42 year career at Maine Blue Cross and Blue Shield. Many of those years were spent as a manager in the accounting department.

After retirement in 1984 she was employed by Stevens and Stevens a publication company. Later she was hired as state secretary to Woman’s Christian Temperance Union of Maine in which she held membership for many years.

She was a past member of the South Portland Church of the Nazarene and its Joy Group and Women’s Ministries. In recent years she attended the First Baptist Church in Portland where she was baptized in her younger years.

She was a member of the Pro-Life Education Association, the Cora L. Brown Foundations, the Eagle Forum of Maine, the Concerned Women of America, the Business Women’s Republican Club of Portland, the Lincoln Club, the Portland Taxpayer’s Association, and the American Association of Retired Persons.

She was past president of the Portland Diet Mission, past director of the Associated Hospital Service of Maine Credit Union and past member of the Business and Professional Women’s Club of Portland.

She has a passion for animal causes and provided a loving home for many stray cats and homeless dogs during her lifetime.

She is survived by distant cousins.

There will be visiting hours on Monday May 1st from 11:30 am to 12:30pm at Jones, Rich & Barnes Funeral Home, 199 Woodford St, Portland which will be followed by a graveside service at Forest City Cemetery at 1:00pm.

You may offer your condolences at www.jonesrichandbarnes.com