Shelagh (Johnson) Featherstone

Mary Shelagh Owen Featherstone, always known as Shelagh, passed away peacefully on Tuesday, May 31, 2022, after a long struggle with Alzheimer’s Disease.

She was born in Ancón Panama on June 23, 1929. Her parents, James Ralph and Alice Edna Johnson were British citizens living in Cali Colombia at the time. She grew up with her family in Colombia in the cities of Cali, Medellín, Barranquilla, and Bogotá, moving as her father’s job with General Electric required. She attended several schools, receiving instruction in Spanish, English, and German. For high school, she attended Loretto Abbey in Toronto Canada. After high school, she attended Duke University in Durham, North Carolina.

Upon graduation, she returned to Bogotá Colombia to work for the Canadian embassy. While there she met Robert D. Featherstone who was on an auditing assignment with General Electric. The two were married on July 6, 1954, in a double ceremony with her sister Gennifer and her husband, Robert Renfrow. The newly married Featherstone's departed immediately for Rio de Janeiro for six months as Robert had another Latin American auditing assignment.

Upon returning to the U.S., they lived in several cities up and down the east coast before finally settling in Ridgefield Connecticut in 1975. They were married for 56 years. Shelagh was an avid golfer and a member of Salem Golf Club for many years. She was a devout Catholic and an active member of Saint Mary’s Roman Catholic Church in Ridgefield.

She is survived by her four children, James, Michael, Margot, and Robert, as well as by ten grandchildren and one great-grandson. Shelagh loved people, laughed easily, and enjoyed every opportunity she got to speak Spanish. Her talent and enthusiasm for languages and history were evident in her conversations. She was a loving force and the social center of the Featherstone family. Hers was a life well-lived and she is missed.

A Mass of Christian Burial is scheduled for August 13 at 10:00 a.m. at St. Mary’s Roman Catholic Church located at 55 Catoonah Street in Ridgefield, Connecticut. Mass will be followed by interment in Saint Mary Cemetery at 110 North Street in Ridgefield. A reception will be held from 12:00 – 2:00 at Gallo Ristorante at 5 Grove Street in Ridgefield following the interment.

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