PETERBOROUGH — Sarah du Pont “Sally” Cahill, 80, died peacefully Jan. 24, 2010, after a lengthy illness, surrounded by her loving family, at RiverMead Retirement Community.

Born in 1929 and raised in Wilmington, Del., she was the daughter of Emile F. du Pont and Sarah Dure Townsend du Pont.

Sally attended the Tower Hill School in Wilmington followed by Miss Porter’s School in Farmington, Conn., where she was affectionately known as “Dupie” and served as president of the school her senior year in 1947. She graduated from Bennett Junior College in Millbrook, N.Y.

Sally lived a life of service and leadership. She was most involved with her beloved alma mater, Miss Porter’s School, where she received the school’s highest honor for distinguished service. She was a trustee, 1993-99, and until recently, served on various alumnae, class and development committees.

She was a deacon, member of the Finance Committee and Sunday school teacher at Wellesley (Mass.) Congregational Church; Hospice worker for over a decade at Norwood (Mass.) Hospital; trustee, member of the corporation and chairwoman of Planned Giving at the Joslin Diabetes Foundation; trustee of Stoddard Congregational Church and secretary of Stoddard Historical Society. She held numerous volunteer positions in area hospitals, schools and in the community.

Sally was a devoted wife and mother. She married her husband, Dr. George F. Cahill Jr., in 1949.

She was very supportive of her husband, who has had a distinguished medical research and teaching career.

They lived in New York City in the early 1950s, and then in Wellesley and Needham, Mass., raising four daughters and two sons. Love of nature and the outdoors brought them to Stoddard in the 1980s, where they built a home on property they had owned since the mid-1960s and had used as a weekend and vacation retreat.

Sally had a deep love and commitment to the natural world and to all living creatures. She created an extensive catalogue of wildflower photographs, accompanied by her observations and research, which was recently printed.

Sally believed in the power of prayer. Her faith and compassion enabled her to make the most of any situation and acknowledge the divinity and grace in everyone.

In addition to her husband of 60 years, of Stoddard and Peterborough, Sally is survived by her children, Colly Remley, Green Bay, Wis., Peter Cahill, Los Gatos, Calif., George Cahill of Bellevue, Wash., Rhett Cahill of Acton, Mass., Eva Cahill of Calais, Vt., Beth Tiedemann of New York City, and their spouses; her brothers, Francis du Pont of Chadds Ford, Pa., and Peter du Pont and his wife, Jeanie, of New York City; 15 grandchildren.

A memorial service will be at 1 p.m. on Feb. 1 at the Union Congregational Church, 33 Concord St., Peterborough. An interment service will be in the spring at Stoddard Congregational Church.

Memorial contributions may be made to Home Health Care Hospice and Community Service, P.O. Box 496, Peterborough 03458 or to Miss Porter’s School, Alumnae Office, 60 Main St., Farmington, CT 06032.