Shirley E. Rathbun

Shirley E. Rathbun Lowell native; 65 LOWELL Shirley E. (Johnson) Rathbun, 65, a lifelong resident of the city of Lowell, died Thursday, August 14, 2008, at the Lowell General Hospital surrounded by her loving family. She was the beloved wife of Rev. Robert P. Rathbun, pastor of the Fifth Street Baptist Church of Lowell, with whom she celebrated their 43rd wedding anniversary on October 10, 2007. Mrs. Rathbun was the daughter of the late Harold L. and Gladys A. (Hunt) Johnson and graduated from Lowell High School in the class of 1960. She was employed for three years as a secretary at Hanscom Air Force Base in Bedford before her marriage, and 26 years by the Lowell School Department as a paraprofessional working with special needs children until her retirement in 2004. She was a faithful member of the Fifth Street Baptist Church which she joined after becoming a Christian in 1959. Mrs. Rathbun was very active in the genealogical community in Lowell, doing much volunteer work at both the Pollard Library, and at the Center for Lowell History over the course of many years. Besides her husband, she is survived by two sons and a daughter-in-law, Daniel M. and Carol (Nash) Rathbun of Hubbardston, and Gary A. Rathbun of Houston, Texas; two grandchildren, Jonathan P. Rathbun and Rachel G. Rathbun of Hubbardston. She is also survived by one sister, Ruth M. Meyers of Chelmsford; and one brother and a sister-in-law, Harold E. and Mary E. Johnson of Pelham, NH; several cousins and many nieces, nephews, and dear friends. RATHBUN Friends may call at the DRACUT FUNERAL HOME, 2159 Lakeview Ave., DRACUT, on Sunday from 2 until 5 P.M. Her Funeral Service will held on Monday at 10 A.M. in the funeral home. Interment in Westlawn Cemetery in Lowell. Those who wish can make donations in her name to the Lowell General Cancer Center, 295 Varnum Ave., Lowell, MA 01854. For online condolences and directions visit dracutfuneralhome.com