Anne Whitmore Smawley, loved to dress up
Anne Whitmore Smawley, 92, of Lewes, formerly of Bel Air, Md., took her final bow Wednesday, Aug. 21, 2019, around 5 a.m., fittingly, as her son Whitmore retorted, “It’s five o’clock somewhere!” one of her favorite sayings since she liked her version of Tea Time around 3:30 p.m., with her dear neighborhood friend, Jean Stewart. Of course, her tea was usually a PBR (Pabst Blue Ribbon) or her famous Old Fashioned.
Anne had been in the wonderful care of the Lewes Beebe Healthcare staff on the third floor after a brief illness. She was born Dec. 16, 1926, in Washington, D.C., only child of the late Warren and Elizabeth Whitmore. Anne was the beloved mother of Donna L. West (Roger) of Harbeson, Andrew Whitmore Smawley (Anita) of Ocean View and Kenneth Mason Smawley. She leaves behind three grandchildren: Lindsey Lewandowski (Adam), Katlyn Mohr (Shane) and Matthew Tucker Smawley; five great-grandchildren, Wyatt, Maci and Christian (Lindsey), and Hayleigh and Isaac (Katlyn); and Sunny, her 13-year-old Pomeranian that now resides with Donna.
Anne was a widow at 42, raising her three children as the fiercely independent and strong woman that she was. Anne began her career late in life working at Talles Jewelry Store on Main Street, Bel Air, Md., before moving on to the Harford County tax assessment office. Anne taught her children to cook so that there would be a meal on the table when she came home from work. She gave them the love of gardening, nature and the fierce understanding we were stewards of the land. Anne and her children were some of the earliest to embrace recycling, a program started by Bob Chance, science teacher at Bel Air High School in the ‘70s. Anne still collected all her recyclables at her assisted living facility and had Donna recycle them.
Anne loved reading, especially the Washington Post. When her eyes were better she would start her morning with a pot of coffee and read it on her beloved sun porch. As her eyes started to fail due to macular degeneration, she subscribed to the Sunday edition which took her most of the week to read. Strangely when she first moved to Delaware she switched political affiliation, much to the surprise of her daughter. As things in the political world shifted, she came to her senses and had her daughter help her switch back to the Democratic Party. As her daughter said, “Mom, I can’t let you die a Republican.”
All who knew Anne knew how much she loved to dress up, especially during the Christmas holidays in her infamous Mrs. Santa outfit; she created it from a skating outfit pattern in thin red wale corduroy with white faux fur. Anne had legs to die for, and she was a hit at every office holiday and house party. She passed on her love of creating costumes to her children, especially her daughter Donna.
Anne loved working in her garden and took pride in all its seasonal blooming glory. You would find her daily when she was still able into her late 80s tending to her beloved Camellias, hydrangea - she would pinch a young stem from a plant she would see on her walk, put root tone on them and before you knew it, she had a lovely blooming bush. She planted several trees; one of her favorites was a Chinese fir (Cunninghamia lanceolata - I think she just liked saying the name) that grew to tower over her house. She passed her love of gardening on to her children and neighbors. She loved giving the neighbors gardening tips whether they wanted it or not.
Anne loved birds and had numerous feeding stations around her house and then outside her assisted living room. She found great joy in learning the various species’ names, and getting to know the resident birds. She had a red-tailed hawk in Bel Air that nested in her pine tree and she would feed it chicken outside her kitchen window. Her Lewes Purple Martin house still thrives with generations of birds that frequented over a decade. She passed this love of birds on to her children and neighbors as well.
Anne loved watching golf. She followed Tiger Woods from his first guest appearance on the Johnny Carson show at 3 years old and until his most recent win at the 2019 Masters. She subscribed to Golf magazine so she could keep tabs on him and the other golfers she followed.
The family would like to thank the staff who kept an eye on Anne at Brandywine Living at Seaside Pointe where Anne resided since January 2017.She was active right up to the last month, regularly seen cruising around the building with her walker frequently decorated in the holiday of the season.
Anne is sorely missed by her children and their families, her friends and neighbors, and all those who met her through life. At Christmas time you would find her passing out her homemade cut glass candy to those who worked at the grocery store, the bank, the post office, neighbors, and people she met along the way. A life celebration is planned on the eve of what would’ve been her 93rd birthday during the Christmas holiday, her most favorite time of year.
Anne donated her body to the Maryland Anatomy Board just as her mother did to help further medical research. Donations in Anne’s memory can be made to one of the organizations she supported for years: the local SPCA, PBS, the Audubon Society or Best Friends Animal Society in Salt Lake City, Utah.
