Clara Dow Wentworth, 95, died February 9, 2023, after being lovingly cared for by her son Sky and wife Michelle at their home in Wiscasset. Clara had lived in her own home until 6 months before her death. She had determination and grit until the very end.
Born in Wiscasset to Vinton and Grace Dow, she graduated from Wiscasset Academy in 1944.
At the age of 16 she started work at the Bell Telephone Company in downtown Wiscasset. She also enjoyed working at dinner parties hosted by prominent Wiscasset families in her teen years. She continued to work for the telephone company throughout her life and ended her career working in management in Portland. She had plans to attend Wellesley College until she met the love of her life Joe.
On September 14, 1946, in Camden, she married Joseph Wentworth who had just returned from serving in the European Theatre. They resided in Wiscasset for the rest of their lives. In 1947 they had their first son Les. Clara contracted TB when Les was two years old and had to reside in a sanatorium for a year. This life altering event changed Clara’s life forever. She would for the rest of her life live it with great appreciation and passion. After a required wait she had a second son named Schuyler.
Clara was all about family and friends, yet found time to travel by motorhome, cruises to the Panama Canal, Caribbean, and Bermuda. She enjoyed Carnival in Trinidad and Tobago, visits to Cozumel, Mexico, and Canada to name a few. She enjoyed taking country line dancing lessons, Tae Kwon do, scuba diving, belly dancing, painting classes with local artists, gardening, birding, and was an avid reader. She was also a 50 plus year member of Daughters of the American Revolution, and laid wreaths faithfully every Memorial and Veterans Day for decades at the Wiscasset Veterans Wall. She enjoyed membership over the years in the Wiscasset Female Charitable Society, Wiscasset Garden Club, Wiscasset Yacht Club, Family Motor Coach of Maine, and the Maine Wheels. She taught Sunday school at the First Congregational Church of Wiscasset. She was a volunteer at the Elmhurst Center in Bath and Telephone Pioneers infant hearing assessment. She stopped belly dancing at the age of 91. She performed with a group of women in Bath who meant the world to her and is forever grateful for their friendship and love shown to her. Clara was an extraordinary woman who touched many, many lives with her kindness, generosity, selflessness, and unconditional love. Her altruistic nature left a permanent mark on all who knew her.
She was predeceased by her husband Joseph Wentworth on October 14, 2013. They were married for 67 years.
She is survived by two sons, Leslie Wentworth of Augusta and Schuyler Wentworth and his wife Michelle of Wiscasset, three grandchildren, Max Wentworth of Wilton, Cole Wentworth of Alna, and Elizabeth Leclerc and her husband Chris of Topsham, three great grandchildren, Dana Green of Portland, Grace Leclerc at Brown University, RI and Sawyer Wentworth of Wilton, many nieces, and nephews.
A private family service will be held at a later date. Burial will be at Old Greenlawn Cemetery in Wiscasset. Memorial contributions may be made to Wiscasset Feed Our Scholars, Wiscasset Public Library, or The Morris Farm Trust. Arrangements are by Daigle Funeral Home, 819 High Street, Bath. Condolences may be made online at www.Daiglefuneralhome.com.
