BELFAST – Shirley M. (Frost) Cunningham, 81, died peacefully at her home on Feb. 8, 2004, surrounded by her family. She was born Dec. 16, 1922, in Gray, the daughter of Charles and Ada (Sykes) Frost. After graduating from Gray High School in 1940, Shirley spent her life caring for her family and others. For many years she was the cafeteria manager at Truitt Brothers, she was an EMT for the Belfast Ambulance Service, and she worked at the Deborah Lincoln House in Belfast. Her hobbies included quilting, sewing and knitting. She loved to cook for her family and enjoyed orchestrating many of the family gatherings where her many special recipes were shared. She attended the Swanville Community Church. Shirley is survived by her husband of 61 years, Orville “Orvie” Cunningham of Belfast; four children, Charles Cunningham and his wife, Dianne, of Jacksonville, N.C., Lorraine Kane of Belfast, Denise Hood and her husband, Wayne, of Weare, N.H., and Stanley Cunningham and his wife, Laurie, of Belmont; nine grandsons who were a source of great pride and joy to their Grammy include, James Willis and his wife, Tracy, of Lamoine, Greg Cunningham and his wife, Laurie, of Converse, Texas, Kyle Willis and his companion, Ling, of San Jose, Calif., Keary Cunningham and his wife, Drew, of Fort Lauderdale, Fla., Patrick Hood and his wife, Mandy, of Union, Chad Cunningham and his wife, Shannon, of Morrill, Jason Hood and his wife, Elisabeth, of New Boston, N.H., Luke Cunningham and his wife, Darrah, of Northport, and Eben Hood and his wife, Kathleen, of South Lake Tahoe, Calif. She surely enjoyed hearing about all of then and then sharing their accomplishments with everyone she met. Great-Grammy was blessed with 13 great-grandchildren, Sara, Alex, Andrew, McKenna, Micaylah, Ashley, Zachary, Grace, Lilah, Brian, David, Griffin and Silas. Mom’s caring touched the lives of many and she will be dearly missed by all of her family and her many special friends as well. She was predeceased by her parents; and two brothers, Charles and James Frost. The family wishes to extend their sincere thanks to Dr. Thanhauser who cared for our mom during this difficult time. Also, a special thanks to mom’s hospice nurse, Laura Campbell, whose care, understanding, and support is greatly appreciated. A memorial service to celebrate the life of Shirley will be held 2 p.m. March 6, 2004, at Rackliffe Funeral Home, 54 Church St., Belfast, with Pastor Jeff Martin officiating. In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Waldo County Home Health and Hospice, 119 Northport Ave., P.O. Box 407, Belfast, ME 04915.
SHIRLEY M. CUNNINGHAM
