Maureen Pamela Clements Silby

Maureen Pamela Clements Silby, 85 of Graham, NC passed away peacefully at her home on Sunday 17 December 2023. Maureen was born in Hampstead, England, 4 February, 1938. She was the only surviving daughter of George Henry Clements and Ada Ivy Clements.

She is preceded in death by her beloved husband Ronald Silby, her father, George Clements, her mother Ada Clements, her identical twin brothers, Leonard and Dennis Clements, sister Vera Clements and brother Derek Clements.

She is survived by her sons, Stephen Silby and wife Sally, and granddaughters, Ciara and Sarah. Kevin Silby and wife Ginger; grandsons, Trevor Silby and wife Tiffany; great grandchildren, Claire, Eli, Charlotte and Evan.  Also grandson, Richard Lynn Doby and Rebecca and Hayden Whitt; great grandchildren Karsyn and Kayla.

As a native of London, Maureen experienced and would recollect a childhood surviving years of nightly German bombing raids.  During challenging post-war times of austerity and rationing, Maureen dreamed of the stage and became an accomplished tap and ballet dancer, making appearances in two major London productions.  Following her own mother's early death, Maureen, aged just 16, along with her two brothers, found herself in a different situation of survival - a mortgage to pay and two surviving brothers to raise. After leaving school, Maureen went to college and studied secretarial shorthand. Her early career included work as a secretary, first with a lawyer's office, then with a shipping company dealing with the outward and inward journeys of cargo ships traveling to Burma. Maureen met her husband, Ron, in 1958, marrying the following year in June 1959. Their son Stephen was born in 1960, followed by Kevin in 1961.

Maureen was highly focused and together with husband Ron, they worked their way to bigger and better living conditions to accommodate the family of four. In April 1969, just weeks before the first moon landing, the family visited Ron's sister, Marie, by now a resident of Alamance County herself, and the seed of a new life in the US was sown. Ron and Maureen returned to the UK to see their boys through schooling and, in 1980, took their own giant leap to leave England behind and move, permanently, to the US.   

Maureen and her husband purchased a home in Burlington in 1980, returning to the US whenever possible, before becoming permanent residents in March 1984. Throughout 40 years of living in Alamance County, Maureen and her husband resided in several locations in Burlington, Haw River and finally, Graham. She was well known to many through her 15 years of service as Building Superintendent at Front Street United Methodist Church, Burlington. She retired in 2001.

A service to celebrate her life will be held 1:00 PM Wednesday, January 3 2024, at Lowe Funeral Home Chapel.  The family will receive friends for visitation between 12:00-12:45 PM prior to the service at the funeral home.

On behalf of their mother, her sons wish to thank Maureen's many friends and neighbors who have shown both love and compassion at this difficult time. The family gratefully thanks the staff of AuthoraCare Collective formerly known as Hospice of Alamance-Caswell for their caring and sensitive support, allowing Maureen to pass, peacefully, at her home in Graham.

If you wish to make a donation in lieu of flowers, contributions in the memory of Maureen Silby may be made to The Hospice Home, 914 Chapel Hill Road, Burlington, 27215.