Dr. Amy Bowles Wheaton, formerly of Bluff Head Farm in Guilford, died at Academy Point in Mystic on Aug. 21 after a long, full life of service to others.  She was the wife of the late Philip D. Wheaton. 

Dr. Wheaton held many important roles during the course of her life. She was the Commissioner of the Department of Children and Youth Services (now the Department of Children and Families) for the State of Connecticut, as well as the acting Commissioner for the Department of Mental Retardation. She also ran the Children’s Unit at the Connecticut Valley State Hospital in Middletown. An important era in her work was at Middlesex Community College where, as a professor, she met her husband, Philip D. Wheaton, founder and first president.

Following her retirement, Amy returned to serve on the Middlesex Community College Foundation Board of Directors for 15 years, where she was a passionate advocate for the college, its students, and the Foundation’s scholarship program. Dr. Wheaton received the 1988 Connecticut Human Services President’s Award and the 2004 Connecticut Community Colleges Trustees Merit Award. She held a Ph.D. from UCONN, a master’s degree from Trinity College, and a BA from Smith College.

In addition to her many other accomplishments, Amy was a proponent of living life joyfully. She was known to sport anything from a clown wig, to a turban, to a witch’s hat, and delighted in bringing fun into the serious. Amy was also an avid gardener, pumpkin painter, bird lover, and naturalist who enjoyed holidays, black labs, and a good clean house. She was famous for her listening and wise counsel.

She is survived by her children, who celebrate her many accomplishments and feel her death as a great loss: Samuel Bowles Slade of Wakefield, Rhode Island, Elizabeth Grace Slade of Northampton, Massachusetts, and David Rockwood Slade of Guilford. She is also survived by her daughters-in-law, Sue Coughlin, Mary Price, and Jennifer Brant, as well as her nine grandchildren, all of whom honor her loss.  In addition, she is survived by her brother, John Bowles and his four children, Tiffany, John Patrick, Matthew and Amy, who will miss her.

Please join Amy’s family in honoring her unique spirit at a memorial celebration of her life hosted at Middlesex Community College on Saturday, Sept. 15, at 11 a.m., in 808 Chapman Hall. In lieu of flowers, the Wheaton/Slade family requests memorial donations be made to the Philip and Amy Wheaton Memorial Endowed Scholarship, c/o Middlesex Community College Foundation, 100 Training Hill Road, Middletown, CT  06457.  Hawley Lincoln Memorial in Guilford is in charge of arrangements.