CHARLESTON – Sally Macomber Bickmore, 68, passed away on Aug. 12, 2013, in her home, surrounded by her family.
Sally was born May 23, 1945, in Dover-Foxcroft, the youngest daughter of Lyle and Sylvia (Brown) Macomber. Sally graduated from Foxcroft Academy in 1963. After high school, she attended Eastern Maine General Hospital School of Nursing where she was named Nursing Student of the Year in 1965 and, as a result, was flown to California for the National Nursing Convention. The following year, Sept. 10, 1966, she married Raymond E. Bickmore.
As a nurse, she began her career at Ross Home in Bangor, then worked as a Home Health Care nurse when her children were young. She worked for 10 years as a MedSurg nurse at Mayo Regional Hospital on the 3-11 shift, and an additional 10 years as a nurse at Charleston Correctional Facility. In 1992, while at the Correctional Facility, she continued her record of nursing excellence by being the first nurse in the state to become a Certified Correctional Health Professional. She retired from nursing in 1998 after having practiced for 33 years.
Retirement offered her more time to do the things she loved. Perhaps her favorite place to be was at camp on Third West Branch Pond, preferably in a canoe with a fly fishing pole in her hand and a commanding view of Whitecap Mountain as a backdrop. She enjoyed hiking, four wheeling, cross-country skiing, as well as other outdoor pursuits.
Sally also enjoyed spending time with family and friends. She had many of both. Her grandchildren, Shayla and Austin, kept her on the go as she eagerly attended countless soccer games, basketball games, track meets and concerts. They brought much joy into her world.
She and Ray enjoyed traveling to various places: the Canadian Rockies, Sweden, England, North Carolina, Virginia and Costa Rica, to name a few, but her heart was always most content at home or in the North Maine Woods. We are sure you will be bolstered by her incredible strength of spirit whenever you take the time to appreciate the beauty of nature…she will be there with you.
Sally is survived by her husband and best friend of 46 years, Raymond Bickmore; daughter, Kimberly Smallidge and husband, Glenn, of Ellsworth; son, Robert Bickmore and wife, Kimberly, of Dover-Foxcroft; two grandchildren, Shayla Rae and Austin Lyle Bickmore; brother, Bill Macomber and wife, Jane, of Blanchard; sister, Betsy Kopyc-Arsenault and husband, Wil, of Brunswick; special brother-in-law, Tim Bickmore of Corinth; as well as several nieces, nephews, in-laws and close friends. She will also be missed by her feline companion, Oreo and her grandkitties, Tango, Cash and Bentley.
A memorial service will be held 11 a.m. Saturday, Aug. 17, at Bradford Baptist Church. In lieu of flowers, Sally requested that those who wish to remember her make a donation in her name to the New England Hemophilia Association at www.newenglandhemophilia.org/memorials-tributes. If you wish to mail in your donation via check, please make it out to NEHA and note on your check “In Memory of Sally Bickmore” and send it to NEHA, 347 Washington St., Suite 402, Dedham, MA 02026.
Sally M. Bickmore, R.N.
