Sheila A. O'Neill, 55
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. â€' Sheila Anne O'Neill, 55, of 450 Henderson Road died Thursday, April 9, 2009, at home surrounded by family.
Born in Canton, N.Y., on Sept. 6, 1953, daughter of Leland and Freida van Brocklin Thompson, she attended schools in Heuvelton, N.Y., and earned bachelor's degrees from the State University of New York at Canton and, in sociology, at Potsdam. She resided in Denver, St. Louis and Iowa City, Iowa, before moving to Williamstown in 1987.
Mrs. O'Neill developed a lifelong concern for people with developmental disabilities while working in adult group homes in Denver and was a social worker with Pride Programs Inc., which employed developmentally disabled adults. She also was director of group homes in for the St. Louis Association for Retarded Citizens after moving to that city in 1979, and a social worker for Systems Unlimited, a service agency for adults with developmental disabilities in Iowa City.
In her early years, she studied and taught all varieties of dance including ballet, jazz and tap. After moving to Williamstown, she devoted herself to caring for her young family.
She enthusiastically joined in a number of volunteer activities, including as director of the Williamstown Red Cross blood drive. She was a member of the Williamstown Youth Center board of directors. She was a devoted and active member of First Congregational Church, for which she was director of Christian education and a Sunday school teacher. She also coordinated the children's fair, served as a deacon, and was co-chairman of its Sunday Meals on Wheels.
She loved attending her children's soccer games and being with friends in the soccer community. She loved the outdoors and had enjoyed the bicycling, hiking, and skiing activities available in Colorado. In 1972, she was the St. Lawrence Seaway Festival Queen and runner-up in the Miss Thousand Islands pageant in northern New York.
She and her husband, Dr. Charles Eric O'Neil, were married Aug. 16, 1978, at Rockland Community Church in Lookout Mountain, Colo.
Besides her husband, she leaves a daughter, Erica Lindsey O'Neill of New York City; two sons, James Byron O'Neill and Colin Anders O'Neill, both at home; three brothers, Lynn Thompson and Terrance Thompson, both of Heuvelton, and Richard Thompson of Weedsport, N.Y.; a sister, Sharon Farell-Owderkirk of Hammond, N.Y., and numerous nieces and nephews.
She was predeceased by her parents and five brothers, Gregory Thompson in infancy, Brian "Bing" Thompson, Bruce Thompson, Gary Thompson and James Thompson.
FUNERAL NOTICE â€' Services will take place Tuesday, April 14, at 1 p.m. at First Congregational Church, 906 Main St., Williamstown. Calling hours at Flynn & Dagnoli-Montagna Home for Funerals, West Chapel, 521 West Main St., North Adams, will be from 4 to 8 on Monday, April 13. Burial will be private.
In lieu of flowers, memorial donations are suggested for the American Cancer Society or First Congregational Church's Meals on Wheels Fund through the funeral home.