Brenda L. Dunton, had an indomitable spirit
Brenda L. Dunton, 71, of Seaford passed away peacefully surrounded by some of her closest friends Tuesday, Oct. 12, 2021. She was born in Salisbury, Md., the daughter of William and Ora (Callis) Dunton.
Brenda grew up in Seaford, graduated from Seaford High School and went on to receive her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in speech and language pathology at Southern Illinois University. She retired from the Howard T. Ennis School in Georgetown, where she was employed for 20 years.
Traveling was Brenda’s greatest joy in life! She took many trips and cruises with friends all over the world, seeing much of Europe and the U.S., including Alaska, Hawaii, Puerto Rico, and most of the National Parks. She cruised through the Panama Canal and loved Costa Rica, where she traveled twice with her Rehoboth friends. As a young girl she vacationed in Cape Charles, Va., at the home of her grandparents along with her cousins, and enjoyed returning there as well. She recorded each and every event and place with many photos.
Brenda was an animal lover, an avid reader, a good writer and poet; she loved sports, especially the Baltimore Ravens! She really enjoyed music and good food with friends, and she was a good cook.
Brenda had an indomitable spirit, despite the adversity she faced. She approached life with optimism and had a great sense of adventure. She created an amazing life with a career she loved and a supportive circle of friends from work, church and travels; even people from past cruises were still in touch with her. Her life was rich with many blessings and full of spirit. Brenda was an inspiration to all who met her.
Brenda was preceded in death by her parents, aunts, uncles and other relatives.
She is survived by several cousins, Franklin Callis of Virginia, June Surdam of Florida, Jane Turner of North Carolina, Martha James of Virginia, Annette Turner of Arizona, Jo Carlisle of Alabama, and second cousins, Nicole Jackson and Natalie Stockwell.
She is also survived by her beloved friends, who were like family, especially Nancy Sapp, who made her daily life possible as her caretaker for 29 years, John Sapp, Kathy and Derb Hall, Terry and Doug Gardner, Ruthie, Neil, Niles, Ariel Stevenson, Isaiah Mohr, Renee and Gregg Weer, Sara Russell and many, many more.
Funeral Services will be Friday, Nov. 12, at 2 p.m., at St. John’s United Methodist Church, 300 N. Pine St., Seaford. The Rev. Dr. Kyung Hee Sa will officiate.
To leave a condolence visit www.cranstonfuneralhome.com.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made to Healing Hands Animal Hospital, 727 E. Main St., Salisbury, MD 21804. This is where Brenda adopted her two beloved cats, Spirit and Lily. The funds will go to care for her cats until they are placed and also to care for their litter mates still there. Or donations may be made to Niles Stevenson, 6 N. Manor Drive, Rehoboth Beach, DE 19971. Brenda was Niles’ speech pathologist from the time he entered Howard T. Ennis School at the age of 3 years. He is the reason for her becoming part of his very large Rehoboth family. The funds help with his and his roommates’ Seaford group home needs and outings.
