Muriel Sturgis Soule died May 17 at her home in Woolwich. Muriel was born Feb. 23, 1917, in St. Petersburg, Fla. She grew up at the Sturgis ancestral home at Broadacres in Vassalboro, graduated from Cony High School in Augusta, Edgewood Park in Greenwich, Conn., Ringling College in Sarasota, Fla. and later attended the University of Maine in Augusta. She was employed by the Maine Fish & Game Department for several years. She was a Girl Scout leader and former member of the Kennebec Valley Garden Club. During WW II she served as a Gray Lady at the Veterans Hospital in Togus.
She was married to David B. Soule in 1942. In 1954, she and David moved to Woolwich. Mrs. Soule served on the Altar Guild of St. Philips Church in Wiscasset for many years and was chairman of their Strawberry Festival. She served two terms on the Woolwich Planning Board and the Woolwich Conservation Commission. She was a member of the So. Woolwich Volunteer Fire Society. Mrs. Soule was past president of the Bath Garden Club and a founder of the Wiscasset Garden Club. She was a former trustee of the Bath Memorial Hospital and a volunteer at the Bath Memorial Hospital Coffee Shop for 18 years. She served on the Board of Directors for the Garden Club Federation of Maine for 20 years and was past chairman of the Landscape Design Critics Council.
She was appointed by Gov. John Reed to the Advisory Committee of the Keep Maine Scenic Committee. This committee was instrumental in eliminating roadside billboards and reducing litter in the State of Maine. Gov. Kenneth Curtis appointed Mrs. Soule to the Advisory Committee of the Critical Areas Committee on which she served for nine years.
Mrs. Soule was chairperson of the Maine chapter of the New England Wild Flower Society for 10 years, served on the Board of Overseers and as an honorary Trustee. Her family donated to this society 40 acres on the Kennebec River in Vassalboro honoring their mother, Annie Sturgis. The sanctuary is known as the “Annie Sturgis Sanctuary” and is open to the public. Gov. John McKernan presented the family with a “Critical Areas Award” for the preservation of colonies of a very rare wild ginger species within the sanctuary.
She was a member of the Josselyn Botanical Society, served on the Merrymeeting Audubon Society and was a founding member and director emeritus of the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens. She was a member of the Woolwich Historical Society, Mayflower Society and the Wiscasset Library Book Club.
She is survived by her husband of 64 years, David B. Soule; son, David B. Soule, Jr. and wife Patricia J. O’Reilly; two grandchildren, Tyson N. Soule and Erika Soule and husband Steven Shea.
Mrs. Soule had five brothers and sisters, Rebecca Sturgis Hilton, Elizabeth Sturgis Kinsman, Margaret Sturgis, Hester Williamson, and Horace R. Sturgis, Jr.; all have predeceased her.
There will be no visiting hours.
Memorial service 2 p.m., Fri., May 26 at St. Philips Church, Wiscasset.
Private committal will be at the Murphy’s Corner Cemetery, Woolwich at a future date.
Memorial contributions may be sent to the Coastal Maine Botanical Gardens, Inc., P.O. Box 234, Boothbay, ME 04537 or New England Wild Flower Society, 180 Hemenway Rd., Framingham, MA 01701.
Arrangements are by Mayo & Daigle Funeral Home, 40 Federal St., Wiscasset.
