Adele M. Smiley

BEDFORD -- Adele Marie Smiley, 92, died Feb. 16, 2009, at her home after a long illness.

She was born on March 3, 1916, in Chicago, to Emil and Mae (Bertonz) Moreau. She was raised and educated in Chicago, where she was a talented athlete.

After her schooling, she married Col. Edwin P. Doty. His career in the military gave them the opportunity to live in many areas of the country, including overseas and Panama.

While her husband served in the military, she was active in the USO and played on the USO softball team. Edwin died in 1950.

She then met and married Dr. Edward F. Smiley II in 1951. They lived in Maryland until they moved to Bedford in 1958.

IN HER LIFE: She was active in the Sunday School program at Bedford Presbyterian Church, was an active PTA mother, and an avid flower gardener. She nurtured the flowers from seed to bloom and enjoyed seeing others receive pleasure from touring her gardens. She will be remembered for her resilient and hopeful sprit, her ability to connect with the youth and her grace and dignity.

She was preceded in death by her two husbands, Col. Edwin P. Doty, and Dr. Edward F. Smiley II, and her parents.

Her family includes four children, Marilyn Phillips and her husband, Dwight, of Baltimore, Md., Marion Smiley and her husband, Bernard Yack, of Cambridge Mass., Edward F. Smiley III and his wife, Lisa, of Martha's Vineyard, Mass., and Susan Burns and her husband, William, of Bedford; five grandchildren, Kerri Maguire, Mike Maguire, Christopher Burns, Emily Burns and Ned Smiley; three great-grandchildren, Sarah Maguire, Grace Maguire, and Jamie Maguire; and a sister, Lenore Becker of Chicago.

SERVICES: The funeral service will be Saturday at 11 a.m. at Goodwin Funeral Home, 607 Chestnut St., Manchester. Burial will be in the spring at Bedford Center Cemetery.

Memorial donations may be made to Animal Rescue League of New Hampshire, 545 Route 101, Bedford 03110.

For more information, go to www.goodwinfh.com.