Zelda H. Shaw, 83, of Damariscotta, passed away peacefully on April 6 at Miles Memorial Hospital in Damariscotta.
She was born Zelda Heitman on Sept. 4, 1923, the daughter of Dorothy and Otto Heitman of Gardnerville, Nev.
She attended Douglas County schools and the University of Nevada at Reno where she was a band majorette and a member of the Delta Delta Delta sorority.
Mrs. Shaw’s parents owned a ranch in the foothills of Carson Valley, Nev. She was a third generation Carson Valley resident, descended from the pioneer Neddenriep family.
As a young girl she learned to ride horseback and was very involved with the 4-H Club where she participated in livestock competitions. In 1941, she led the parade for the Nevada State Rodeo.
Her father, Otto Heitman, was murdered in 1935 during a robbery, leaving his wife to supervise the ranch and three children, which she continued to do successfully. As the oldest child in the family, Zelda had two boisterous brothers to contend with, as well as her chores with the livestock.
In 1943, she married Jac R. Shaw, a University of Nevada student who had just enlisted in the U.S. Navy to serve in WWII. After his discharge, they settled in Gardnerville, Nev. and helped run the Heitman Ranch. Zelda worked at the Carson Valley Mercantile. After a few years in Hollister, Cal., the family returned to Carson Valley and Jac and Zelda purchased Shaw’s Feed Store in Gardnerville, Nev.
Zelda was a homemaker before working at the Town & Country and the Tumblewind in Minden, Nev. She later opened Zel’s Place, filled with turquoise, silver, and Native American crafts in Carson City, Nev.
Jac and Zelda moved to Maine in 1985 to enjoy their retirement years with their daughter Sally and her children. Jac passed away in 1993, and Zelda elected to stay in her adopted state of Maine. Bridge and gardening were her favorite hobbies.
Mrs. Shaw was active in many community efforts, but a special favorite was Daffodil Days to benefit the American Cancer Society, where she volunteered for eight years. She was also active in the Waldoboro Women’s Club, the Waldoboro Historical Society, the Lincoln County Republicans, and she volunteered at Cove’s Edge on the Miles Memorial Campus in Damariscotta.
In Nevada, she was a past president of the Nevada Republican Women’s Club, as well as a member of the Douglas County Republican Central Committee, and a member, organist and Sunday school teacher at Trinity Lutheran Church. She also served on the Lutheran Women’s Missionary League, the Reno Philharmonic Auxiliary, and the Minden Fortnightly Club.
She was predeceased by her husband of 50 years, Jac R. Shaw, and granddaughter, Alison Lynn Shaw of Reno, Nev.
She is survived by two daughters, Linda Reid of Gardnerville, Nev., and Sally Lobkowicz of Waldoboro; son, William J. Shaw of Minden, Nev.; brothers, Dennis Heitman of Meridian, Ida., and Robert Heitman of Colbert, Wash.; and eight grandchildren and 13 great-grandchildren.
Memorial service 3 p.m., Sat., April 28 at the Trinity Lutheran Church, 1480 Douglas Ave., Gardnerville, Nev.
Graveside service will be for family only. Zelda will be interred in the family plot at Garden Cemetery, next to her beloved husband in Gardnerville, Nevada.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be sent to Heritage Park, Shaw Memorial, Town of Gardnerville, 1407 U.S. Highway 395, North Gardnerville, NV 89410, or to Lutheran Hour Ministries, Shaw Memorial, 660 Mason Ridge Dr., St. Louis, MO 63141.
Arrangements are entrusted to Hall Funeral Home, Waldoboro.
