Marion Kramer Finbury, 88, died in her sleep after a brief illness Saturday morning, Nov. 21,at her home at the Edgewood Retirement Community, North Andover.
She was born in New York City, Aug. 11, 1927, the daughter of Joseph and Lena Kramer. Her siblings were Eugene Kramer (deceased) and Kris Warren of Princeton N.J. Finbury graduated from Hunter High School in Manhattan and from Vassar College as an English major in 1948. She married Haverhill attorney Herbert Finbury and they lived, worked and raised their family at their homes in Haverhill and West Tisbury. Finbury was a college guidance councilor who began her career in 1970 at Abbot Academy and retired as head of the college guidance department at Phillips Academy in 1992. After retirement she worked part time at Harvard University as an admissions officer and as a volunteer at Boston CityYear. She was awarded the McKeen Award from the Brace Center for Gender Studies at Phillips Academy in 2000. She was well known for her fierce intelligence, grace, gentle wit, beauty, and progressive politics. She was a life-long music lover and was a reliable source for the lyrics and melodies of the American Jazz Song Book. She fondly recalled waiting in line in the rain to hear Frank Sinatra in 1943 in NYC and going to hear Ella Fitzgerald in the Village and Dave McKenna at the Copley Plaza in Boston. She was an avid reader and a life long learner. She loved to discuss politics and was actively engaged in current events. In her final years she assisted MSNBC with their TV ratings as best as she could. Always fashion forward, having begun her working career at Women’s Wear Daily in New York City, Finbury was recognized by her signature over-sized glasses and red beret.
She is survived by her children, Elaine, John and Dan Finbury; grandchildren Margo and her husband Josh, Max, Matthew, Anna and Sam; two great grandchildren, Ella and Valea; daughters-in-law Patty Brayden and Patricia Reeser; son-in-law Kenneth Lindauer; and her sister-in-law Ruth Finley.
Relatives and friends are invited to attend a memorial service at Edgewood Retirement Community, 575 Osgood St., North Andover, at 1 p.m.,on Tuesday, Nov. 24. Private interment will be in Phillips Chapel Cemetery, Andover. Arrangements are by the H.L. Farmer & Sons Funeral Homes, Haverhill and Bradford. Memorial contributions may be made to the Daniel Edelstein Scholarship Fund, Temple Emanuel, 7 Haggetts Pond Road, Andover, MA 01810.