Amy Wheaton

Mystic - Dr. Amy Bowles Wheaton, formerly of Bluff Head Farm in Guilford, died at Academy Point in Mystic, on Aug. 21, 2012, after a long, full life of service to others.

Her children, Samuel Bowles Slade of Wakefield, R.I., Elizabeth Grace Slade of Northampton, Mass., and David Rockwood Slade of Guilford, celebrate her many accomplishments and feel her passing as a great loss. Also honoring her loss are her daughters-in-law, Sue Coughlin, Mary Price, and Jennifer Brant, and her nine grandchildren. She will be missed by her brother, John Bowles and his four children Tiffany, John Patrick, Matthew, and Amy.

Dr. Wheaton held many important roles during the course of her life. She was the commissioner of the Department of Children and Youth Services (now the Department of Children and Families) for the State of Connecticut, as well as the acting commissioner for the Department of Mental Retardation. She also ran the Children's Unit at the Connecticut Valley State Hospital in Middletown.

An important era in her work was at Middlesex Community College where as a professor, she met her husband, Philip D. Wheaton, founder and first president.

Following her retirement, Amy returned to serve on the MxCC Foundation board of directors for 15 years where she was a passionate advocate for the college, its students, and the Foundation's scholarship program. Dr. Wheaton received the 1988 Connecticut Human Services President's Award and the 2004 Connecticut Community Colleges Trustees Merit Award. She held a Ph.D. from the University of Connecticut, a master's degree from Trinity College, and a bachelor of arts degree from Smith College.

In addition to her many other accomplishments, Amy was a proponent of living life joyfully. She was known to sport anything from a clown wig, to a turban, to a witch's hat, and delighted in bringing fun into the serious. Amy was an avid gardener, pumpkin painter, bird lover, and naturalist, who enjoyed holidays, black labs, and a good clean house. She was famous for her listening and wise counsel.

Please join the family in honoring her unique spirit at a memorial celebration of her life hosted at Middlesex Community College at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 15, in 808 Chapman Hall.

In lieu of flowers, the Wheaton/Slade family requests memorial donations be made to the Philip and Amy Wheaton Memorial Endowed Scholarship, c/o Middlesex Community College Foundation, 100 Training Hill Road, Middletown, CT 06457.