Barbara Ann (Cullen) Meservey (1934-2017)

FARMINGTON – Barbara Ann (Cullen) Meservey, 83, of Rangeley, passed away after a long illness on June 20, 2017 at Orchard Park Nursing Care Center.

She was born Jan. 3, 1934, the daughter of Ralph Bernard and Lucy Ann (Petrochko) Cullen, and was raised in Clinton. She also lived in Orleans and Eastham on Cape Cod, Mass., and then settled in Rangeley.

She was a professional secretary, bookkeeper, business owner of the Farmhouse Inn in Rangeley, worked for the US Postal Service and as a Real Estate Agent. She was an active member of the Episcopal Church. She was an avid gardener. Her main love and vocation, however, was music.

Barbara openly shared the joy of music with her family and her community. She spent years as a vocal coach, choral director, music director, and as a member of choirs and choruses, sharing her lovely soprano in group and solo performances throughout her life with organizations including the Highlanders of Cape Cod, Mass., the Da Capo Opera Company of Hyannis, Mass., Arena Theatre in Orleans, Mass., Provincetown Choral Society, Maine Community Chorus, Portland Symphony, and the Sandy River Players of Farmington. She presented a solo Brown Bag Concert at the Nordica Auditorium and earned a mid-life BA in Music/Business from University of Maine at Farmington. She was a beloved member of the “Angelic Choir” of the Church of the Good Shepherd in Rangeley and was actively involved in the Rangeley Friends of the Arts, both on the Board and in musical productions, from 1975 until her illness. She and her husband, Paul Meservey, shared their beautiful voices at many events through the years. The rich culture of music in Rangeley is her legacy.

She is survived by a sister: Carol Jean Adams Dodge of Waterville; three children and spouses: Valerie and Jeffrey Zapolsky of Rangeley, Pamela Ellis of Rangeley and Robert Ellis of Ledyard, CT; two step-children and their spouses: Michael and Kim Meservey of Augusta and Linda and Richard Brink of Harrisburg, Penn.; 11 grandchildren and 11 great-grandchildren.

She was predeceased by her husband, Paul Franklin Meservey, and her parents.

Tributes and condolences may be shared on her memorial wall at www.wilesrc.com.

A Christian Memorial Service will be held at the Episcopal Church of the Good Shepherd, Main Street, Rangeley, on Tuesday morning, July 4, at 10 a.m., with a reception to follow in the Undercroft hosted by the family and the ECW. Committal prayers will be at Evergreen Cemetery, Rangeley at 1 p.m. In lieu of flowers, please send memorial donations to either the Church of the Good Shepherd, PO Box 156, Rangeley, ME 04970 or the Rangeley Friends of the Arts, PO Box 333, Rangeley, ME 04970. Cremation and memorial services are being provided by the Wiles Remembrance Center, 137 Farmington Falls Road, Farmington.