BEAVER MEADOW – Doris Emily Atkyns Hartwell, 77, a life long resident of Beaver Meadow, passed away Tuesday afternoon, Aug. 23, 2011 at her home with her family by her side following a long illness.
Doris was born in Beaver Meadow on June 28, 1934, the daughter of Carlos and Mildred Davis Atkyns. She was a 1951 graduate of the South Otselic School and was the class salutatorian. In 1952 in South Otselic, she married Stanley Hartwell in the South Otselic United Methodist Church. Over the years, Doris has been employed by the Norwich Pharmaceutical Co., Nellis Air Force Base and the Selective Service Board. Doris and her husband had also owned and operated the Georgetown Store, worked for the Cornell Cooperative Extension in Norwich and worked as a nursery school teacher for the South Otselic United Methodist Church.
A woman with a warm smile and a friendly personality, she was awarded Citizen of the Year and she and her husband were also Mr. & Mrs. Chenango County. Very active in 4-H she was a 4-H leader in Beaver Meadow for 40 years and was also Sunday School Superintendent for 30 years. As her own children reached adulthood, they became foster parents to many eventually adopting six as their own.
Doris is survived by her husband Stanley of Beaver Meadow; her children Linda Ciambrone and her husband Alan of Easton, Pa., Brenda Ledford of Penfield, Wayne Hartwell and his wife Karen of Ocklawaha, Fla., Sandra Swayze and her husband Mark of Beaver Meadow, Dan Hartwell and his wife Andrea of Manlius, Brian Hartwell of Syracuse, Michelle Adams of Norwich, Lance Hartwell of Florida, Tim Hartwell and his wife Stacy of Saratoga and Matt Hartwell of Cortland. Also surviving is her sister Esther Raymond of Pensacola, Fla.; 17 grandchildren; 8 great grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.
Doris was predeceased by her son Ralph Hartwell, her son-in-law Richard Ledford and her sister Evelyn Bays.
Funeral services for Doris will be held at 2 p.m. Sunday from the South Otselic United Methodist Church. The Rev. Carl Johnson, pastor, will officiate. Interment will follow in the South Side Cemetery of Plymouth.
Friends may call at the R.J. Fahy Funeral Home on Saturday from 6-8 p.m. and on Sunday at the South Otselic United Methodist Church from noon to 2 p.m.
Please consider memorial contributions to the United Methodist Nursery School, P.O. Box 47, South Otselic, NY 13155.