ORR’S ISLAND – Sue Cary, beloved wife, mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and life-long community volunteer, passed away on Oct. 1, surrounded by family and friends at her home on Orr’s Island. She was 81.

Born to Louise and Kenneth Crombie on Sept. 23, 1926, in New York City, she was raised in New Jersey, graduating from Nutley High School in Nutley, N.J., and later attended Smith College in Northampton, Mass. Following her marriage to Kenneth C. Cary, the devoted husband with whom she celebrated her 60th wedding anniversary earlier this year, they started a family.

While residing in Chester, N.J., she devoted her life to the care of others, first as a mother and grandmother and later in various positions at Welkind Hospital in Chester, the first facility in the nation specifically for patients suffering from multiple sclerosis. After over 20 years of service, during which time she received her certification as a physical therapist, she retired with her husband to their home on the southern tip of Orr’s Island in 1984. She quickly embraced her new community’s spirit of service to others.

Her departure for Maine was a retirement in name only; in fact, it ushered in the most active phase of her lifetime, one that continually left her colleagues and community astonished at her vigor. There was not a facet of community life on Orr’s and Bailey Islands she did not touch, from her service as first EMT on the OBI Rescue Squad, and later as rescue chief and board member of the OBI Fire Department, to her position as secretary of the Orr’s Bailey United Methodist Church, to her service as a polling registrar for the town of Harpswell.

A passionate quilter, she co-founded the Ocean Waves quilting group and served as a board member of the Maine State Pine Tree Quilter’s Guild. Her abilities as a quilter were exceeded only by her skills in the kitchen. Rising before daybreak nearly every morning, she produced tray after tray of muffins, cookies and other baked goods whose quality continues to be legendary within the community. Equally active within the arts, she performed as a member of numerous choirs and choral groups; she was particularly proud of her participation with the Portland Symphony’s Magic of Christmas Choir.

Her passion for her hobbies was indistinguishable from her passion for public service. Her cookies and muffins found their way to literally hundreds of church and community bake sales. Her quilts were given as housewarming gifts to new homeowners through Habitat for Humanity, for which she served as a volunteer coordinator, Seven Rivers Chapter, organizing the chapter’s first-ever women’s build. She had a lifelong commitment to the American Red Cross, donating untold gallons of blood, was involved in many blood drives and recently was recognized for completing her 175th blood platelet donation. Her inspiring record of service was recognized by both her community and the Atlanta Committee on the Olympic Games (ACOG), which selected her to carry the Olympic torch as part of the 1996 Summer Games Olympic Torch Relay, an honor she would treasure throughout her life.

If her record of service is remarkable, her approach to that service and personal demeanor were equally so. Forever modest and approachable, she shrugged off others’ wonderment at her vigor with a self-deprecating laugh. For all of her many commitments, she would always make herself available to anyone; family member, friend or stranger, who required a sympathetic ear or offered a funny, light-hearted story. Her sly sense of humor will be missed nearly as much as the warmth of her presence and the generosity of her spirit.

She is survived by her husband Ken; and leaves two sons, Robert R. Cary of Sussex, N.J. and Kenneth C. Cary Jr. of Clinton, N.J.; and a daughter, Cynthia Hammond of Auburn; as well as her sister, Ann Evans of Brunswick; and faithful daughter-in-law, Lois Cary of Sussex, N.J. She also leaves seven grandchildren, Sarah, Maren, Amy, Robert, Michael, Ryan and Christopher; and three great-grandchildren, Esme, Kaylie and Beckett; as well as many nieces and nephews.

She is predeceased by her daughter, Carolyn Haskell of Turner.