1916 – 2014

AUBURN — Stella E. “Betty” Irish, 98, of West Minot, died Wednesday afternoon, Aug. 13, at Bolster Heights Nursing Home in Auburn.

Betty was born in West Minot on May 10, 1916, a daughter of Samuel J. and A. Madeline (Barthlome) Whittemore. She was educated in West Minot and Buckfield schools, and went on to graduate from Wilfred Academy in Boston in 1937.

On Nov. 25, 1942, she married Everett M. Irish in Madison, Wis., where he was stationed in the military.

She worked as a hairdresser in Brookline, Mass., for several years, before moving back to Maine and settling in West Minot. In Maine, she worked at Central Maine General Hospital (now CMMC) for several years, retiring in 1972.

Betty was a former member of the West Minot Grange and the Pythian Sisters. She was a member of West Minot Union Church for many years and served as the clerk and on various committees, and taught Sunday school. She was also a member of the West Minot Ladies’ Circle and was the clerk and treasurer of West Minot Riverside Cemetery Corp., retiring at the age of 80, after 30 years of service.

She is survived by two sons, E. Milford Irish Jr., of West Minot and Stephen W. Irish of Lewisville, Texas; two grandchildren, Patrick Irish and Amy Forcha; and four great-grandchildren, Elliot and Anne Irish and Brooke and Summer Forcha.

She was predeceased by her husband, Everett, in 1975; and siblings, John Whittemore and Margaret Purington.

Online condolences may be expressed at www.chandlerfunerals.com.