Shirley Isabel Oakley Moore

Shirley Isabel Oakley Moore of Bel Air, Maryland, a retired legal administrator, died February 26th, 2012 at the Senator Robert Hooper Hospice House. Shirley, born in 1932, was the daughter of the late Agnes Isabel Cross Oakley and Eugene Bertram Oakley. Her mother, born in Louisbourg, Nova Scotia was raised in St John's Newfoundland where she met her future husband, Eugene Bertram Oakley. Shirley's parents each moved to Brooklyn, New York, where they married in 1931and raised three children, Shirley, her late brother, John Bertram Oakley, and her younger sister, Joyce Oakley, now of Shelburne, Vermont.

Shirley graduated cum laude from Westminster College, New Wilmington, Pennsylvania where she achieved a Bachelor of Arts degree in English and met her husband, Donald Jack Moore, the son of the late Wilson and Janet Sheridan Moore of Lakewood, New Jersey. Since 1968, Shirley and Don made their home in Knollwood, a tightly-knit community where neighbors became close friends whose support continued throughout Shirley's final illness.
Prior to her marriage, Shirley began her career in the field of legal administration with the research and development firm of Arthur D. Little in Boston. After a hiatus when she and Don, a sales representative for Scott Forseman educational textbooks, began their family, Shirley returned to the legal field, joining the Law Offices of the late John Evans Clark of Darlington, first as a secretary and then as an office manager for Clark, Birch and Kahoe. Following Mr. Clark's retirement, she became an estate manager for attorney John C. Love and continued in that position with Love, Fleming and Bearsch until her own retirement in 2005. Shirley also assisted several members of the Harford Bar Association with estate matters.

In addition to her professional commitments, Shirley was active in the Association of American University Women (AAUW). As a strong advocate of higher education and professional development, she was integral in the organization and presentation of the annual Judith A. Resnik Awards program at Harford Community College and in numerous other committees and events.

Shirley and Don enjoyed dining out with their extensive network of friends. Those relationships, whether forged in their college days, through their respective professional relationships, or in their community, provided strong support for both of them throughout Shirley's illness. Shirley and Don also delighted in their numerous trips. Their devotion, respect and love for each other were manifest to all who know them throughout their 57 year marriage as was their joy in each other and their love and pride in their children, Jacqueline, Jeff and Jennifer and in their most cherished granddaughter, Brin Marissa Moore, the daughter of their son, Jeff, and his wife, Whitney Werner Moore.

Shirley is survived by her husband, Don, their children: Jacqueline Anne Delisle and her husband Steve, Jeffrey Scott Moore and his wife, Whitney, Jennifer Lee Moore and her close companion, Steve Walker, their beloved granddaughter, Brin Marissa Moore and Shirley's sister, Joyce Oakley, who helped care for her during her last illness.

In lieu of a viewing, a gathering of friends and family will be held at the Senator Bob Hooper House, 2007 Klein Plaza Drive, Forest Hill on this Friday, March 2nd at 1:30 to 3 PM. For directions - www.uchospice.org. The memorial service (also at the Hooper House) will follow immediately after, at 3:00PM. Shirley will be interred in a private ceremony at Christ Episcopal Church in Forest Hill, Maryland. Although no ashes will be present at the memorial service, the family wishes to honor the following individuals by designating them as Honorary Pallbearers: Ronald Martinek, Zach Stagnoli, Joseph Campbell and Edward Westing.

In lieu of flowers, donations to the "Senator Bob Hooper House," whose staff provided an incredible level of comfort and care to Shirley and to her family, are invited. The mailing address for the Hooper House is:

Senator Bob Hooper House
c/o Upper Chesapeake Health Foundation
520 Upper Chesapeake Drive, Suite 405
Bel Air, MD. 21014