Sharon M. McNamara

Sharon McNamara (née McClain) was born in Pittsburgh, PA to Charles and Marguerite McClain (née Davenport). She was raised in Maryland, came back to Pennsylvania for college and stayed. The eldest of 5 children: sisters Suzanne (Al Ritchie) & Denise (Phil Tarbell), brothers Chuck & Bill (survived by Dody), she attended St. Michael the Archangel Catholic School in Silver Spring, Maryland through 8th grade (with a few years in between at St. Mildred’s Academy in Laurel, MD), then the Academy of the Holy Names, also in Silver Spring, graduating in 1962.

At age 17 she attended St. Francis College in Loretto, PA. It was there she met her beloved, Jim McNamara. Their connection deepened the day John F. Kennedy was assassinated. They talked about their grief late into the night, fell for one another, and were never apart again.

After graduating with a BA in English in 1966, Sharon supported Jim as he attended law school, and they married September 7, 1968. One of the happiest times of her life was backpacking through Europe with Jim in 1971. Sharon and Jim then moved to Doylestown, PA and became pillars of the community.

Sharon volunteered over the years for the League of Women Voters, several local libraries, and the Central Bucks PTA, and delighted in donating to numerous charities, including the National Wildlife Foundation, The Nature Conservancy, and The Alzheimer’s Association. She worked in several local schools: as a Chapter One math aide at Doyle Elementary in Doylestown, an office secretary at Upper Moreland High School in Willow Grove, and a principal’s secretary at Tamanend Middle School in Warrington. Eventually she became the legislative assistant to three state senators: Dave Heckler, Joe Conti, and Chuck McIlhinney. She retired in 2010.

Sharon was a lover of art, nature, classical music, 15th century choral polyphony and the Beatles. She adored taking trips with her sisters and her sisters-in-law. She brought joy to everyone she contacted. Above all she loved the written word: she had a voracious appetite for knowledge, was always reading, and loved word etymology. She is predeceased by Jim, her husband of 56 years, and survived by her greatest joys: daughter Robin and son Evan (Brittany) and her grandchildren Lacie, Vincent and Finnegan. More than anything, Sharon loved, and was loved.

Donations can be made in Sharon’s name to St. Joseph’s Indian School.