Obituary of Shirley Carter Knowland

Shirley Carter Knowland, beloved sister and aunt, passed away on Saturday, May 3rd from natural causes.  She is survived by her close friend and companion, Diane Schulhoff, with whom she spent 60 wonderful years. Shirley also leaves behind her two sisters, Charlotte Carberry and Grace Leonard and her three nieces and one nephew, Melissa Graham, Meredith Leonard, Theresa Sheppard, and Chris Carberry.

Shirley was born in Boston, and as a child overcame polio. This experience inspired her to go into nursing, and upon her graduation from Woburn High School in 1956, she went on to Newton Wellesley School of Nursing, where she graduated in 1959. She then continued her education, and earned a masters in education from Boston University in 1973. Shirley was also a teacher at the Newton Wellesley Hospital’s School of Nursing for many years, helping to mold another generation of excellent nurses. Following that, she continued working at Newton Wellesley as the Vice President in Charge of Nursing.

Since she was a child, Shirley had always loved animals. There were few memories her loved ones had where there wasn’t a cat by her side, keeping her company. She loved all cats, and when visiting family she would often greet the cat in the house first.  Her family and friends would find her talking to them, saying “pspsps”, and whispering kind words of affection.

In her free time, Shirley loved travel and photography. When she was a young adult, she and her sister, Charlotte, would take monthly trips to New York to shop and see shows. A few years later, she saved up for a three-month European tour with friends. She continued to travel with friends and family for most of her life. Shirley always had a camera with her, snapping lovely pictures of friends, family, animals and nature. She loved to go on nature walks to appreciate natural beauty.  Her love of nature carried over to her gardening hobby as well.  She was an excellent gardener, using snapdragons, roses, peonies and many other flowers to express her artistic love of nature. Later in life, she started painting lovely pictures of her favorite blooms. 

Shirley spent most of her adult summers at The Cape in Dennis. She loved to walk the beaches with her bare feet near the waves. She enjoyed checking out the little shops and finding fun spots to visit. Her door was always open for friends and family to come and share her love of Cape Cod. 

She and Diane had many good friends and enjoyed spending time with them. Shirley’s zest for life, carefree spirit, and compassionate and loving nature drew people to Shirley.  People always loved Shirley, and she had a way of loving them back in ways that made them feel truly special.  She was a kind and fun person to be around, and the memories she made with her dear friends and family were lasting and filled with love. 

A funeral will be held on May 10, 2025, at the Montvale Congregational Church, 36 Orange St., Woburn, at 10:00 am.

As an expression of sympathy, in lieu of flowers, donations in Shirley’s honor may be to the MSPCA.