RUMFORD – Phoebe H. Stowell, 91, of Dixfield, died suddenly Wednesday evening, March 9, in the Emergency Room at Rumford Community Hospital with family members, and caregivers, at her side.

She was born May 8, 1913, in Berlin, N.H., the daughter of Col. Burritt H. and Ellen (Drew) Hinman. Her father was a career U.S. Army officer, and her family traveled extensively around the country during her childhood and teenage years.

She graduated from Brookline, Mass., High School in 1931. She then attended Garland Junior College, now part of Simmons College, Boston, Mass. and graduated in 1933.

She worked for several years at American Express Co. in Boston, Mass., and on Jan. 7, 1938, she married Rand N. Stowell, of Dixfield, in Washington, D.C.

Shortly thereafter, they moved to Dixfield and eventually settled in the Stowell home on Lower Main Street, where she raised her family, cared for her husband, and lived out her years.

Mrs. Stowell was a devoted wife and mother. She was very proud to say that she lived in a home which has now been in the Stowell family for over 120 years.

After her beloved husband’s death on April 11, 1968, she moved to her winter home at Sugarloaf and became involved in “goings-on” at the mountain. For many years, together with her close friend Pat “Nana” Webber (died 1998) of Farmington, were tireless volunteer workers for alpine ski racing at Sugarloaf. The two of them shared the “Woman of the Year Award,” presented in 1986, by the Sugarloaf Area Chamber of Commerce, for their contributions to the mountain community. She served on the first Carrabbassett Valley Planning Board and was a trustee of Carrabbassett Valley Academy for several years.

On her retirement, she was honored trustee emeritus standing by the Academy Board. She founded the Phoebe Stowell Scholarship Fund to provide financial assistance to student athletes from Maine, with preference to students from Oxford and Franklin Counties. To date, 15 Phoebe Stowell Scholars have attend CVA.

She is survived by three sons and their spouses, John and Linda Stowell, of Farmington, Rand and Susan Stowell, and Richard “Dick” and Nancy Stowell, all of Weld; eight grandchildren, Tyler and his wife, Alison, of Boston, Mass., James of Honolulu, Hawaii, Nora of Woodstock, Vt., Porter of New York City, N.Y., Lila of Austin, Texas, Preston of Farmington, Barrett and Whitney, both of Weld; and one great-granddaughter, Sophie of Boston, Mass.

In addition to her husband, she was predeceased by two brothers, Burritt Hinman, Jr. in 1970, and Robert Hinman in 1993.