Anne V. Lowell

NAPLES — Anne Victoria Lowell, 91, of Naples, passed away on Sunday, Sept. 1, 2013, after a brief and unexpected illness.

Born in Otisfield on Oct. 23, 1921, she was the daughter of Ivar and Agda Hoglund Viitala of Harrison. She enjoyed a rural upbringing on her parents’ farms in Otisfield and Harrison with her four sisters and one brother.

She attended Harrison grammar school, graduated from Bridgton Academy in 1940, and later attended Katherine Gibbs Secretarial School in Providence, R.I., Class of 1943. She then dedicated 44 years to her career in banking, working at the RI Hospital Trust Company, Cumberland Savings and Loan, Canal National Bank and Key Bank of Maine.

She was a member of the Longfellow Toastmistress Club of Portland, holding all officer positions, learning the art of communication and articulation that she carried with her throughout her life. She was also a member of the North Windham Union Church. She found joy in her many pets and her hobbies: gardening, cooking, reading, picture puzzles and traveling (Canada, Finland and Florida were among her favorite destinations). She mastered the art of pie-making from her Finnish mother and was fondly referred to as the “Pie Lady.”

She is survived by her daughter, Ingrid Thomas of Naples; her son, Ivar Babb of Hopkinton, R.I.; two grandchildren; one great-grandchild; sisters, Lida Brackett of Bridgton and Nancy Kirkpatrick of Wyalusing, Pa.; brother, Carlo Viitala of Harrison; and 11 nieces and nephews.

Visiting hours will be held from 10 a.m. until the time of the memorial service at 11 a.m. on Saturday, Sept. 7, 2013, at the Dolby Funeral Chapel, 434 River Road, Windham. Burial will follow at Arlington Cemetery, Route 302, North Windham. Online condolences may be left at www.dolbyfuneralchapels.com

In lieu of flowers, memorial donations may be made to: Maine Animal Refuge League, P.O. Box 336, Westbrook, ME 04098, or to www.arlgp.org/donations