OXFORD – Melba S. Whitmore, 92, formerly of Oxford, passed away Wednesday evening, Feb. 14, 2007 in the Gilmour Health Care Facility, where she had resided since October.
Born in Sherburne on June 8, 1914, Melba was the daughter of Frank and Fannie (Heady) Stone. She was a graduate of the Sherburne High School, after which she worked as a payroll clerk for the Utica Knitting Mill in Sherburne. On July 18, 1936, in Sherburne, she married Frank V. Whitmore, and they relocated to Oxford. Melba was employed by the Oxford Inn where she worked as a waitress for 39 years, but she was also actively involved in the day-to-day management of the Inn during her time there. In 1974, she began working as a lab assistant for Procter & Gamble, from which she retired in 1983. During her years in Oxford, Melba had been a member of St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, and belonged to the Coffee-at-Chubbs group. She and friends Lorraine Emmick and Cathy McKenzie would meet at Helen Roberts’ house in Oxford for cocktails on Helen’s porch, calling themselves the Cocktails at Helen’s Group. She also enjoyed being part of the Aquacise group at the Norwich YMCA.
Melba had resided at the Chenango Valley Home in Norwich for the last five years. She sincerely enjoyed living at the Home. Following a bone fracture, her home for the last four months was the Gilmour Health Care Facility in Norwich, where she received exceptional care and love in her final days. The family wishes to express their appreciation to those at the Chenango Valley Home and the Gilmour Facility who offered Mom a loving hand, a gentle kiss or hug. She loved you all.
Melba is survived by her children: Tom Whitmore and wife Pat, and Mary Davis and husband Tom, all of Norwich; by grandchildren: Cheryl Welch, Norwich, Renee and Dan Devine of Clifton Park; T.J. Davis of Clinton, and Jennifer and Chris Olds of Norwich; by great-grandchildren: Alyssa Welch and Logan Welch, Norwich; Evan Devine of Clifton Park, and Bailey Olds, Tanner Olds and Collin Olds, all of Norwich; by her sister and brother-in-law, Shirley Racculia Daviau and husband Ed of Syracuse; and by nieces and nephews of Syracuse. She was predeceased by her husband, Frank V. Whitmore, on Dec. 31, 1984; by her parents, Frank and Fannie Stone, brother Elliott (Huck) Stone, sister-in-law, Frances E. Curnalia, and niece, Mary E. VanBuiten.
Funeral services for Melba will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday from the Broad Street United Methodist Church of Norwich. The Rev. Jeff Hale, pastor, will officiate. Friends are invited to call at the church on Saturday from 10 a.m. until the service at 11. Interment will be at a later date in the Riverview Cemetery of Oxford.
In lieu of flowers, anyone wishing to remember Melba may make a contribution to St. Paul’s Episcopal Church, Box 72, Oxford, NY 13830.
Arrangements are by the R.J. Fahy Funeral Home of Norwich.