BELLINGHAM, Wash. — Shirley Hartel Connelly, 84, a longtime resident of Fitzwilliam and Peterborough, passed away Aug. 9, 2010 in Bellingham, Wash.

She was born Nov. 25, 1925, in New York, the daughter of the late Maurice and Isabel (Norton) Tallet. She attended schools in New York and graduated from Park Ridge (N.J.) High School.

Connelly lived in Fitzwilliam for 25 years before moving to Peterborough in March of 2001. In 2008 she moved to Washington to be near her family.

She was an avid collector with varied interests. Her more sizable collections included ocean liner and British Royalty memorabilia. Her passion for these collections took Shirley and her husband, Bill, on multiple forays to Great Britain where they found many treasures and formed numerous deep friendships.

Those who knew Connelly also knew of her love for books and will remember how proud she was of the extensive library she surrounded herself with.

Connelly had quite a flair for interior decorating and especially enjoyed antiques. She got great satisfaction in homemaking in each of her residences and was especially proud of her historical home on the common in Fitzwilliam.

She was a loving wife, mother and grandmother. She was predeceased by her beloved husbands, John Hartel, Jr. in 1966 and William Connelly in 2003.

Surviving family members include her daughter, Carole Hartel Gainor, and her husband, Bill of Bellingham; grandchildren, Casey, Macgregor and Kimball Gainor; step-daughter, Dawn Connelly and step-grandchildren, Sheila and Denise (Traficante), Tabitha Connelly and Caleb McGoldrick.

There will be no calling hours.

Graveside services will be held Aug. 17 at the family lot in Pine Grove Cemetery, Royalston Road, in Fitzwilliam at 1 p.m. A reader from the Christian Science Reading Room in Peterborough will officiate.

The Cournoyer Funeral Home and Cremation Center, 33 River Street, Jaffrey is assisting the family.

To view an online memorial, send a note of condolence to her family, or for more information, please visit www.cournoyerfh.com.