WEST TREMONT and FAIRFIELD, Conn. – Clare French Shepley, born Nov. 14, 1941, in St. Louis, died Sunday, Dec. 9, 2007, from ovarian cancer at Yale-New-Haven Hospital. Ms. Shepley, a longtime resident of Fairfield, Conn., maintained her principal residence in West Tremont, Mount Desert Island. Ms. Shepley traces her ancestry to early English immigrant landings in Massachusetts, where many family members were lost during a Native American confrontation at Shepley Hill, Groton, Mass. Her father, Arthur B. Shepley Jr. was a prominent member of the St. Louis Bar and a highly respected civic leader. Her mother was the former Judith B. Gamble, also of St. Louis. Her uncle, Ethan A. H. Shepley was chancellor of Washington University, St. Louis. Ms. Shepley, a graduate of Miss Porter’s School, attended Briarcliff College and in later years continued her academic interests at Sarah Lawrence College, where she earned a Bachelor of Arts degree. She began her lifelong involvement with non-profit and civic activities during her secondary years as a volunteer at Barnes Hospital, St. Louis. Her time in Fairfield, Conn., included participating and chairing scholastic non-profit fund raising events. She was chairman of Fairfield Country Day School Annual Sale, a major fund raising event and a board member of Fairfield County Hunt Club. Other activities included becoming a licensed emergency medical technician with the Ace Ambulance Co. In Maine, Ms. Shepley was a board member of Wendell Gilley Museum, president of the Causeway Club and a board member of Southwest Harbor Library, where she volunteered her time to computerize the library filing system. Her favorite outdoor activities were horseback riding, golf and hiking the trails along coastal Maine. Ms. Shepley is best remembered by her friends as a warm, compassionate woman with a ready smile, always quick to offer a helping hand to others in time of need. Ms. Shepley is survived by two sons and a daughter, James G. Conzelman 3rd of Fairfield, Conn., John S. Conzelman of Kennebunk and Shelley C. Burger also of Fairfield, Conn., and their three spouses; eight grandchildren; and her former husband of 28 years, James G. Conzelman Jr. of Stratford, Conn. Funeral services will be held 10 a.m. Friday, Dec. 14, at Trinity Episcopal Church, Southport, Conn. Arrangements by Edmund W. Dougiello Funeral Home, 36 South Pine Creek Road, Fairfield, Conn. In lieu of flowers, the family asks that donations in her memory be sent to the National Cancer Institute for ovarian cancer research at National Cancer Institute, Building 31, Room 11A16, 9000 Rockville Pike, Bethesda, MD 20892.
CLARE FRENCH SHEPLEY
