Eleanore E. Porter, 94, widow of the late Ambassador William J. Porter, died peacefully in her sleep in Naples, Florida on the morning of August 18, 2008.
Mrs. Porter was born on June 25, 1914, in Philadelphia, PA. She graduated as a Registered Nurse from Jefferson Hospital School of Nursing in that city. She volunteered for the Women’s Army Corps in World War II, was commissioned an officer, and served with the 9th Army Air Force in Egypt during that conflict.
She met her husband, a Foreign Service Officer then stationed in Damascus, Syria, in Beirut, Lebanon, where both were on Rest & Recreation leave, and married him in Damascus in 1944.
She accompanied her husband in Consular and Ambassadorial assignments abroad, including Jerusalem, Cyprus, Morocco, Algeria, South Vietnam, South Korea, Canada, and Saudi Arabia, as well as to the Paris Peace Talks, where her husband was Chief US Negotiator. When in the US, she lived in the Washington area, in Falls Church and Arlington, VA, in Bethesda, MD., and in the District itself.
In common with most Foreign Service spouses, she served as an unofficial adjunct diplomat, with many representational and social responsibilities.
Upon her husband’s retirement, she lived in Westport, MA, until moving to Naples last year. She was active in the Westport Art Group and was a member of the Women’s Guild and an organist for St. John the Baptist Catholic Church in that town. She was awarded the Marian Medal for her service to the Church, and was a member of the VFW and the American Legion.
She is survived by her brother, Raymond Henry, of Catonsville, MD, her twin children, Eleanor Clark of Marco Island, FL, and William Porter, of the City of Fairfax, VA, six grandchildren and eight great grandchildren, and several nieces and nephews and their children.
Mass of Christian Burial to which relatives and friends are invited will be Monday, September 15, 2008 at St. John the Baptist Church, Westport at 11:00 A.M.
She will be buried with her late husband in Beech Grove Cemetery, Westport in the Veterans Lot.
In lieu of flowers, please make donations to the Westport Council on Aging, 75 Reed Road, Westport MA, 02790.