OBITUARY Elinor Carol Along December 18, 1933 – November 25, 2018 Elinor Carol Along (née Pohl), 84, of Yarmouth Port, died peacefully at her residence in Mayflower Place on November 25. She was born in New Haven, CT in 1933 and raised in Wakefield, MA. A quick mind, determination and integrity characterized her entire life.
The first in her family to attend college, she graduated from Bridgewater State Teachers College and taught elementary school at U.S. military bases in Morocco, Portugal and Germany. In Wiesbaden, Germany, she met the love of her life, U.S. Air Force Captain William Albert Along, at a birthday party hosted for them by mutual friends (Elinor and Bill shared the same birthday: 12/18/33). They were married in 1959 and spent the next forty-eight years of their lives together.
Elinor traveled the world, living in Germany, Texas, Washington, California and Okinawa before settling in Ridgefield, CT, then Cape Cod and raising her family with unceasing love, ridiculously delicious meals, bone-crushing quantities of books, and a passion for education realized by countless field trips to museums and historic places of interest. She was known to friends and family as a woman of great energy and enthusiasm and superlative organizational skills and creative spirit, which she put to good use throughout her life. She produced an annual school book fair featuring dozens of award-winning authors, led several PTAs, and volunteered and fundraised for the Girl Scouts, school marching bands, and more.
She lent her artistic flair and talents to many projects on behalf of these efforts and her own personal fulfillment. Her faith was an important part of her life and her volunteer activities extended to church, where she taught religious education, introduced interfaith Passover seders, served as a Eucharistic Minister, worked part-time in the church office, worked at the church thrift shop, and every year ran a Christmas dinner for those who were alone for the holiday, feeding literally hundreds in a single day. She and Bill were extraordinary cooks and loved to entertain, celebrating holidays and hosting impromptu gatherings with memorable meals, lively conversation and much laughter.
They shared their love of travel with dear friends, with whom they visited Italy, the UK, Egypt, Argentina, Scandinavia, Russia, Bavaria and more. They also shared a passion for music and held season tickets to the Boston Symphony Orchestra and the Metropolitan Opera, and could often be found on the lawn at Tanglewood in the summer. She was tall of stature, curly of hair, and persuasive of voice.
She was funny and dry and spoke the truth, even when it was not popular. Even after her health and voice faded, her spirit persisted…and does to this day. Elinor was preceded in death by her beloved husband Bill, her son Daniel Joseph, her sister Marion Kouns, and her brother Peter Pohl.
She is survived by daughter Julie Kathryn (Scott Gottlieb), sons Thomas Patrick (Betsy Alongi) and Anthony Albert (MaryJanice Davidson Alongi), grandchildren Anthony (Carla), Gabriela, Joseph (Kat), Christina, Liam, Sam, William and Emma (mother Marya), Nick and Meredith (mother Lisa), and great-grandchildren Natalie and Meredith. She is also remembered fondly by cousins Mary Kathryn Ball-Goldman, with whom she was raised, and Matthew Wallace Gross and a spirited phalanx of extended family. She leaves behind friends and neighbors as numerous as the grains on her favorite Cape beaches and as warm and welcoming as a Sicilian villagio.
You were all her family, and ours. A Memorial Mass will be held at a time to be announced in January 2019 at Our Lady of the Cape Catholic Church in Brewster, MA, followed by a celebration of Elinor’s life. In lieu of flowers, contributions may be made to the St. Vincent de Paul Society.
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