Shelley Boston

Shelley Denise Booker Boston, 69, of Hanover, Maryland passed away on Saturday, November 14th, 2020 in Columbia, Maryland.

On February 21st, 1951 in Winona, West Virginia, Shelley Denise was born to Robert Henry Booker and Beatrice Marion (née Holston). Their small family of four, which also included a younger daughter, Sharon Diane, resided in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania – a result of a migration northward of the West Virginian coal miners. Shelley’s early years were spent in the northern Philadelphia neighborhood of Germantown. A gifted student, she attended Philadelphia High School for Girls (Girls’ High). Founded in 1848 as a university-preparatory school, Girls’ High is one of the first public schools for women. Shelley was a member of the two-hundred and twelfth graduating class.

Later, she attended University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign as a member of “Project 500” – the university’s effort to expand educational opportunities for African American students at the start of the Civil Rights movement leading to the inception of African American Studies in the United States. There, Shelley pursued her first Bachelor’s Degree in English and was given the honor of introducing the legendary writer James Baldwin to her class in the 1970s. Memories such as these awarded pride within Shelley all of her life.

Shelley Booker met Maceo Boston, Jr. in Philadelphia in 1982. The two married in a quiet ceremony soon after and moved to Hanover, Maryland. As an army wife, Shelley Boston worked as an accountant and mother. She made friends and eventually earned a second Bachelor’s Degree in Education later in life.

Shelley is survived by her daughter Blaire Denise Boston; sister Diane Craven; step-children Maceo Boston III, Mya Boston, and Monica Boston; aunt June Garrett; and cousins Crystal Garrett, George Taylor, Robin Loy, and Trina Tabron. She will be remembered by her loved ones in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, Asheville, North Carolina, Baltimore, Maryland, Chicago, Illinois and everywhere else her path has graced. We love you, Shelley and send blessings to you on your journey home!