Mildred Mary Bayley, 92, died on Valentine’s Day at the Zimmerli Pavilion at St. Andrews Village. “Sue” as she was known, was born in Newcastle, to Lawrence “Duffy” Dodge and Frances Webber. Sue was the second of four children: Emma (Donald) Googins, Lawrence “Brud” Dodge, and Hilda (Bill) Lewis.
Although she always considered Newcastle her home, she was raised in East Boothbay and attended local schools and graduated from Boothbay Region High School. In 1952 she married her first husband, William Fred Alley. She and Fred had three children: Mary (Richard) Coventry, James Alley (fiancee Deb Boucher), and Kathy (Tim) Tibbetts.
In Sue’s early life she worked in several local businesses; a local dentist, Dr. Harry Abalon, the Pines Motel, Bob’s Photo & TV, and caretaking in Sprucewold. She was an active member of Our Lady Queen of Peace Catholic Church, serving on many committees and volunteering for special events.
Above all, Sue loved her family and was selfless to the end, always putting everyone else ahead of herself. She took great pride in attending the lessons, games, school events, and activities of her kids. She attended basketball, volleyball, and softball games, tennis matches, piano and horseback riding lessons, regardless of where they were, often all around the state. When the girls were young, she was den mother for Brownie and Girl Scout troops, which included camping trips.
Sue was well known for her gifted artistic talents. Her deep love of nature and its boundless beauty would be reflected in the detail and precision of her handiwork. Her expressions were demonstrated in quilts, hooked rugs, fine needle work, and modeling. She could make anything from Icelandic sweaters to winter coats.
After the death of her first husband in 1972, she met and married Philip A. Bayley in 1976 and moved to Pine Point in Scarborough, blending her family with Phil’s five grown children: Michael Bayley (Debra), Phyllis (Marc) Plessis, Mary Ella (Mark) Howland, Calvin Bayley (Libby), and Jane (Robert) Foley. She took great joy in becoming “Grammy” to his growing family, which in time grew to 13 grandchildren and then welcoming her granddaughter, Nicole Tibbetts, making 14 in all. Watching the “grands” have their own families and the next generation of “great-grands” was truly a joy for her.
Sue had an entrepreneurial spirit and a love for new experiences. Together with Phil, Sue owned and operated the seafood restaurant Salty Bay Take Out in Pine Point for many years until retiring in 1989. In their retirement years, they enjoyed traveling and wintered in Florida. She embraced each moment in what the journey offered. After Phil’s death in 2019, Sue came back to Boothbay Harbor and lived at St. Andrews Village.
A time of visitation will be held on Saturday, March 1, 2025 from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at Hall Funeral Home, at 975 Wiscasset Road in Boothbay. A funeral service will be held at the Hall’s Funeral Home, Boothbay on Saturday, March 1, 2025, at 11 a.m., followed by a reception at the funeral home. Interment will be immediately following the reception at the Evergreen Cemetery in Boothbay.
At the family’s request, in lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made in Sue Bayley’s name to Midcoast Humane – Edgecomb Campus, 27 Atlantic Highway, Edgecomb, ME 04556.
Arrangements are under the care and direction of Hall Funeral Home in Boothbay. To extend condolences or share a story with the Bayley family, please visit Sue’s book of memories at hallfuneralhomes.com.
