Shirley June (Croft) Coleman

Shirley June (Croft) Coleman of Worcester, MA, died in her home surrounded by her loving and devoted daughters on Thursday, October 6th at the age of 86. She was lovingly known as the matriarch of the Coleman family, but sadly her reign came to an untimely end due to pancreatic cancer.

She was born in New London, NH on April 28, 1936, and also lived in Jaffrey and Keene. She was the daughter of the late Barbara (Sholes) Croft and Richard Croft. She was predeceased by her brother, David Croft and sister, Marilyn (Croft) Angwin.

She attended Colby Sawyer Jr. College and graduated in 1956. She then graduated from the Mary Hitchcock-Dartmouth Medical School as a licensed Radiologic technologist. 

On July 15, 1961, she married Leo Coleman and together raised three children. They celebrated 50 years of marriage until his untimely passing due to lung cancer in 2012. 

She worked as an X-Ray Technologist for 33 years for Dr. Kirk Johnson, Worcester and retired in 2012. Shirley immensely enjoyed working with her patients, and her generous gift of conversation put others at ease, knowing they were in her skilled care. 

Shirley wholeheartedly dedicated her life to being a devoted wife to Leo and a fiercely supportive mother to her daughters and grandchildren. She was considered a second mom to several of her children’s friends throughout their lives. Her Energizer Bunny spirit will be sorely missed by all who loved her deeply. We don’t know how we’ll live the rest of our lives without her. 

She was a long-time member of St. Joan of Arc Church in Worcester. She often could be found fervently singing in the choir with her daughter Karen playing the flute alongside her. Throughout her life, Shirley taught us what it means to be a kind and caring person. 

She was an animal lover and especially loved cats which brought her much joy and contentment throughout her life. She kept her mind sharp with daily crossword puzzles and was a lifelong reader. We couldn’t take her away from the television during March Madness basketball. She was happiest going out to dinner for a delicious meal despite her bookshelves loaded with cookbooks. She was a frequent visitor to The Webster House and O'Connor's Irish restaurant in Worcester and Special Teas of Northborough. One of her all-time favorite places to make family memories was at Pickity Place in New Hampshire, which she had the pleasure of visiting one final time this past August. 

She leaves her daughters Cathy Coleman of Webster, Lynda (Coleman) Chilton, her husband Richard of New Braintree and Karen Coleman of Worcester, and two beautiful granddaughters Jessica and Rebecca Chilton.

A visitation will be held Friday, October 14 from 4-7 pm at the MERCADANTE FUNERAL HOME & CHAPEL, 370 Plantation St, Worcester. Shirley’s funeral service will be held Saturday, October 15 at 11 am at Saint Joan of Arc Church, 570 Lincoln St., Worcester. Burial will be private.

In place of flowers, the Coleman family suggests that memorial donations be made in memory of Shirley to the Pancreatic Cancer Action Network, 1500 Rosecrans Avenue, Suite 200, Manhattan Beach, CA 90266 or by visiting her memorial page at http://support.pancan.org/goto/ShirleyColeman or to Best Friends Animal Sanctuary 5001 Angel Canyon Road Kanab, UT 84741