BETHEL – Muriel Whitney, 73, of Bethel, and formerly of Weymouth, Mass., died Jan. 8, at her home after a long illness.

She was born in Somerville, Mass., the daughter of Harold and Meta Knight and received her education in the Weymouth schools.

A graduate of the New England Hospital in Boston as a registered nurse, she worked in Boston area hospitals before moving to Maine in 1975. During her professional career, she was a health educator at the Bethel Area Health Center for eight years and served for four years as the Director of the Retired Senior Volunteer Program.

Between 1975 and 1985, she was a member of the Volunteer Bethel Ambulance Service.

More recently, she was employed by the Auburn Housing Authority as a Community Services Coordinator.

She received her certification by the American Nurses Association as a gerontological nurse in 1984 and kept that certification by reexamination.

Her interests included baseball and hockey, and she was an avid fan of her sons and grandsons for the past 50 years. A great fan of the Boston Red Sox, she was very happy to see them win the World Series. She also had a major interest in advocating for elderly issues and served as an advisor on many boards in the capacity.

Survivors include three sons, Steven and his wife, Donna, of Bridgewater, Mass., Richard and his wife, Ellen, of Bethel, and Kenneth and his wife, Suzi, of West Gardiner; four grandsons, Robert and Jonathan of Bridgewater, Mass., and Andrew and Daniel of Bethel; two sisters, Margaret Daniels of Pembroke, Mass., and Jeannette Lawler of Weymouth, Mass.; and one brother, Harold Knight of Yarmouth, Mass.

She was predeceased by her husband of 28 years, Robert W. Whitney, in 1980.

She will be missed by her family and many friends- especially her special friends, Mary Myers and Caroline Gould.