Doris Shirley (Silverman) Newton

Doris Shirley (Silverman) Newton, 92, of Hadley, passed away on Wednesday, May 10th at Elaine Center at Hadley. She was born June 15, 1930, in Easton, PA to the late Mark and Abby (King) Silverman. Doris had always been active in church and community affairs and held nearly every position in the local United Methodist Church and United Methodist Women in Phillipsburg, NJ, Stroudsburg, PA, Vestal, NY, and Amherst/Hadley, MA. She served as Chairperson of Publicity and Public Relations for the Wyoming Conference, Binghamton District of United Methodist Women. She held leadership positions in Church Women United, and Women in Community Service, and worked with the Job Corps girls sent to Manpower and Project Witness. She was a representative of the Homes Guild for the Methodist Homes for the Aging and was Chairman of Fundraising and Publicity for many years. She also served as a church representative to the Wyoming Conference Children’s Home once a month to mend the children’s clothes. She organized monthly visitations to two Methodist Homes for the Aged, and a Bazaar and Dinner were held each year to raise money for those aged who could not afford glasses, dentures, etc. Fifty-eight United Methodist churches in the Wyoming Conference were involved in this. She was a Sunday School teacher for many years, Director of Vacation Bible School, and helped the conference train Sunday School teachers. Since 1980 she was an active member of Wesley United Methodist Church in Hadley, formerly of Amherst. As her health started to decline in her mid-80s, her former pastor had asked her to prepare a list of her church activities so they could begin training others to fill those positions. The list was three pages long. She loved people. While her daughter was growing up, Doris volunteered in several Girl Scout troops, including Brownie Assistant Leader, and Junior Girl Scouts Leader. The troop met in the family’s recreation room weekly. She was a homeroom mother and active in the PTA. Doris was an editorial assistant working on technical magazines such as Chemical Engineering, Mechanical Engineering, Journal of the American Chemical Society, and American Medical Society at Mack Printing Company in Easton, PA for six and a half years; did statistical work for DSI, Inc. in Washington, DC for over four years; computed the selling price for Automation Shares (a mutual Fund), as Assistant to the Comptroller she did accounts payable for Corporation for Economic and Industrial Research and was a secretary for Gallant, Inc. also in Washington, DC. She was an editorial assistant for the Journal of Social Issues in the Psychology Department at UMASS/Amherst and later a secretary in the English Department for almost sixteen years. She is survived by her one daughter, Debra A. Newton-Carter of Amherst, two grandchildren, Vanessa Carter of Amherst, and Cedric C. Carter II of Austin, TX, and one great-grandson, William Smidy of Belchertown, and many cousins, nieces, and nephews. Besides her parents, she was predeceased by her husband Richard A. Newton who passed away in 2004, her son-in-law, Cedric Carter (2021), her granddaughter, Nichelle Rae Carter (1990), and her brothers, Mark (1949), Robert (2015), and David (2013) Silverman. There will be a Memorial Service at a later date to be announced. DROZDAL FUNERAL HOME of Northampton has been entrusted with her services. In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Doris’ memory to the Wesley United Methodist Church, 98 N. Maple St., Hadley, MA 01035 or to Disabled American Veterans (DAV), Chapter 82, P.O. Box 229, Marlborough, MA 01752. For more information, or to leave the family a personal condolence, please visit Drozdalfuneralhome.com

Doris Shirley (Silverman) Newton

June 15, 1930 - May 10, 2023