Plan for the Future
Linda Pole Shelby died on November 21, 2024 following a long illness. She was born on June 26, 1952 in New York City and was raised in Short Hills, NJ. She attended Kent Place School in Summit, NJ, and received a BA in Music from Wellesley College. Linda married her high school sweetheart Bryan Shelby in 1972, and together they raised three daughters in their pre-Revolutionary era home in Madison, NJ. While their marriage ended in 2014, they remained close friends to the end of her life. Linda was predeceased by her mother, Mildred Waterhouse Pole, her father, Edgar Pole, and her grandmother, Belle Yale Waterhouse, with whom she had a very special relationship. She is survived by her three daughters, Caroline Shelby, Christina Skeen (husband Ian and son Owen, 18 months), and Heather Shelby.
Linda had many artistic talents. She was a skilled pianist and singer, and an expert quilter and knitter. She loved the natural world, delighting in the wildlife in her own backyards and taking every opportunity to teach her children about it. She loved and took pride in her gardens and flowers, with a very special affinity for tulips, of which she had many dozens.
She loved history. She spent decades working on her family tree, going back hundreds of years to the arrival of her Dutch Blauvelt ancestors to the United States, and beyond. She loved archaeology. She found great pleasure in traveling through Europe to visit ancient castles and to imagine the lives of those who walked their halls. And because of her Dutch heritage, she had a special place in her heart for the Netherlands and especially the city of Amsterdam.
She loved music. She always had classical music playing while she hummed and sang along—Bach’s Brandenburg Concertos, Vivaldi’s Four Seasons, Mozart, Handel, and more.
She had a witty, incisive, and deeply intelligent mind. She used to speed through the NYTimes Sunday crossword, always in ink. A proud liberal Democrat, she was fierce in defending her beliefs.
She loved her dogs, deeply. The companionship they gave her was invaluable.
She loved the beach and the ocean.
She loved a good cup of coffee, an excellent piece of chocolate, and a proper glass of champagne.
She loved to laugh and she loved making others laugh.
She loved and cherished her children, finding great pride in their lives and accomplishments. Her daughters will remember and honor her every day, with gratitude for the lessons she instilled in them and for the time that they shared. She will be greatly missed.
Services will be held at Wm. A. Bradley & Son Funeral Home, 345 Main Street, Chatham, NJ 07928 on Saturday, December 7th starting at 10am.
In lieu of flowers, the family suggests a donation in her honor to the ASPCA or to the National Trust for Historic Preservation
