Shirley J. (Swift) Scott

Shirley graduated from Corcoran High School (’70) and went on to earn a bachelor’s of arts (’74) in elementary education, and later her Master’s in Education at SUNY Fredonia. Shirley began her teaching career in Stockton elementary school shortly after she graduated, where she developed her love of teaching, for seven years. She cherished this experience, and maintained contact with many of the families of her students throughout her life. After the birth of her first child, she worked part time as activities coordinator at SUNY Fredonia, organizing events like Winterfest, craft sales, the Christmas hanging of the greens and many more student activities. She returned to public education with the Dunkirk Public Schools where she taught Head Start through fourth grade at Schools 3, 4 and 5. She taught her students with care and compassion, and put her heart and soul into each and every class she taught. She retired in 2007.

Shirley was many things throughout her life, but through it all, she was a builder of community. Whether in the classroom during her tenure in Dunkirk Public Schools, in her Robin Street neighborhood in Dunkirk, NY, in her “snow bird” community of Southern Pines in Bonita Springs, Florida, or her retirement community in Cary, NC, she made it her mission to bring people together.

She loved traveling with friends and family. Regular travels included trips to Myrtle Beach in the spring, Colorado in the summer, and Bonita Springs, Florida in the winter where the family had an enjoyable respite which she cherished. In Colorado the family went on adventures including white water raft trips, extensive hiking, including climbing three different 14,000-foot mountains in the Rockies and venturing down to the bottom of the Grand Canyon. Her shouts of terror and glee can probably still be heard echoing off of the canyon walls. Winters after retirement were spent in Bonita Springs where she was involved in organizing social events and adored the many friends she made while living in the Southern Pines community.

In Dunkirk, she enjoyed her involvement with the Brooks Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, organizing their annual election day spaghetti dinners with entertainment. She was also a past member of the Friends of the Library and Literacy Volunteers. She was especially proud of her early involvement with the Relay for Life. She was a proud participant of the “Happy Hoofers” and enjoyed walking and talking throughout the community. She had a passion for helping children to learn and grow. Besides teaching she was often involved in voluntarily reading to groups of children at a variety of schools upon retirement. She organized the “Robin Street Rugrats” in the summertime, urging neighborhood children to read in the summers and rewarding them with mystery rides to a variety of area locations.

A Celebration of her Life will be held at Harvest Chapel Free Methodist Church, Madison Street, Fredonia on March 11 at 10 AM followed by a luncheon. Contributions in her memory may be made to Rural Ministries in Dunkirk, the Dunkirk Free Library, Revitalize Dunkirk or a charity of your choice.