Martha Manley, 89, of Claremont, New Hampshire, died peacefully at her home surrounded by her family Sunday, September 18.  A 75 year native of Vermont, she has resided with her daughter Cynthia (Manley) Linett and son-in-law Mark Linett since 1996.

      Born September 30, 1921, the daughter of Chester and Blanche (Farwell) Briggs, of Brattleboro, Vermont, she graduated from Brattleboro High School, Vermont Junior College in Montpelier, and the University of Vermont, class of 1943.

      An English major, she taught in high schools in Bristol, Newbury and Woodstock, Vermont. Leaving the classroom briefly in the 1940’s she worked in the Personnel Department of American Optical Co. in Brattleboro, putting together the plant newspaper. From 1954 to 1963 she returned to teaching, leaving in 1963 to edit the Vermont Journal in Windsor, Vermont.

      In 1968 she joined the State of Vermont Vocational Rehabilitation Dept. before becoming a probation and parole officer for the Vermont Dept. of Corrections with offices first in Burlington and then Vergennes and Middlebury.

Initially she was one of only two female probation and parole officers working in the State Vermont, and traveled all over the state visiting clients.

      Over the years she sang with church choirs in all the communities in which she lived. In Woodstock she had roles in two Gilbert and Sullivan operettas which helped raise money for a student scholarship fund – The Pirates of Penzance and HMS Pinafore.  She became interested in Vermont politics during Governor Phillip Hoff’s campaign and helped in other Vermont campaigns.

      After her retirement she was a volunteer in the Middlebury Corrections Office for 9 years before moving to New Hampshire. She also compiled a family genealogy of the Farwell family and wrote a short history of her parent’s lives for her grandchildren.

      She had two unsuccessful marriages over the years.

      She leaves a daughter Cynthia Linett of Claremont, NH, a son Todd Manley of Minneapolis, MN, three grandchildren and two great grandchildren. She also leaves a brother Kenneth Briggs of Jackson Hole, Wyoming and a brother Arnold Briggs of Brattleboro.  A sister, Gladys, died in 1994.

     At Mrs. Manley’s request there will be no funeral service.  The family would like to express its deep, heart felt appreciation to the hospice staff from Connecticut Valley Home Care, especially RN’s Janine and Donna.