Obituary of Serita Bakeman Brown

SERITA BAKEMAN BROWN, 83, died with dignity and grace on December 3, 2010 at Blue Hill Memorial Hospital. She was born December 7, 1926 in Brooksville, Maine, the daughter of Keith and Gladys (Gray) Bakeman. She graduated from Brooksville High School in 1944. She managed the Kikuth Wreath Company for several years and later was employed at Rowantrees Pottery. She appreciated the process and the natural beauty of the pottery, enjoying time spent there with co-workers and her dear friend, Sheila Varnum. Serita possessed an enthusiasm for community volunteering. She served on the Sedgwick Board of Selectmen for 11 years, the Island Nursing Home Board of Directors for 10 years and the Building Committee for the Sedgwick Consolidated School. For the past 18 years she was closely associated with the Tree of Life Pantry and Thrifty Shop and remained an honorary member of the Board of Directors at the time of her death. During her retirement she devoted several hours each week at The Tree of Life, making many new friends. She was a member of the South Brooksville Methodist Church; its congregation and clergy were always a source of great comfort and inspiration. Serita had fond memories of her childhood on Orcutt’s Harbor and, as an adult, found great pleasure in her home and gardens and entertaining at the beautiful location of Caterpillar Hill. She is survived by her beloved husband, Frederick J. Brown of Sedgwick; a daughter Belinda O’Brien and husband Peter of Blue Hill; special step-children, Dennis Brown and wife Sharon of Virginia, Linda Brown Wolotschaj and husband John of Florida and Robert Brown of Florida; cherished grandchildren, Mary Katherine O’Brien of Minneapolis, Minnesota and Matthew Sinclair and wife Audra of Scarborough, Maine, a loving brother Vance Bakeman and wife Helen of South Carolina and their children, Gregory, Geoffery and Jennifer and families; extended family members, Murray Gray of Harborside and Mary Perkins of Brooksville and delightful little friend, Emma Ferden of Penobscot. She was predeceased by her parents, Keith and Gladys Bakeman; cousin Gilbert Perkins and her best friend of her lifetime, Barbara Bridges. A memorial service will be held at the South Brooksville Methodist Church, 1 p.m. Monday, December 6, 2010. In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the South Brooksville Methodist Church, PO Box 34, Brooksville, ME 04617. Arrangements under the care of Direct Cremation of Maine, 182 Waldo Avenue, Belfast. On-line condolences may be offered in her memory at www.directcremationofmaine.