Shirley "Lee" Self Brotherhood

Shirley (Lee) Self Brotherhood passed away peacefully in Hartford CT on May 1st, 2012. She was 84 and a resident of the Duncaster community in Bloomfield, CT. Lee was born on July 22, 1927, in New Canaan, CT to Margaret Cabell (Nonie) Self and Sydney B. Self. Nonie Self was the founder of the New Canaan Mounted Troop, a riding academy that still exists today. Subsequently, Lee learned to ride horses almost before she could walk, and by an early age was an accomplished equestrienne and riding teacher. In 1945 Lee graduated from The Knox School on Long Island, NY. She married John O. Brotherhood, also of New Canaan, in 1949, and they moved to West Hartford, CT. While raising four children, Lee was also a member of the Junior League of West Hartford, the West Hartford Art League, the annual Children's Services Horse Show, and various other civic and volunteer organizations. She was a thirty year member of the Professional Ski Instructors of America, teaching skiing at Mt Tom in Massachusetts and elsewhere throughout New England. The Brotherhoods built a second home on Block Island, Rhode Island, where they eventually retired. Lee's mother Nonie Self was the founder of the Block Island Times, and her husband John was a founding member of the Committee for the Great Salt Pond. Among her many skills and talents, Lee was an accomplished artist, interior designer, gardener, seamstress and cook. She was a fearless and fun loving athlete, and besides riding and skiing, she also sailed and played tennis. A lifelong animal lover, Lee was never without two, three or more beloved cats. In her later years, Lee began to focus on drawing and painting, and has left us a wonderful legacy of bold and beautiful watercolors of flowers and landscapes, many of them painted in her Block Island studio. Lee was preceded in death by her husband John and her daughter Victoria. She leaves behind her daughter Logan Darrow of Sammamish, WA; her son Jonathan Brotherhood, of Nyack, NY; her daughter Vashti Brotherhood of Boxford, MA; and seven grandchildren: Nathanael Brotherhood, of Brooklyn, NY; John Rudolph of Richland, WA; Elisa Brotherhood of New York, NY: Amanda Rudolph of Seattle, WA; Hanna Brotherhood of Nyack, NY; William Haiss Jr of Midway Park NC; and John Haiss of China, ME. She also leaves her sister Virginia (Gincy) Bunker of East Dummerston, VT; her brother Hartwell (Toby) Self of New Canaan, CT, and her brother Sydney Self, Jr. of Hendersonville, NC. There will be two memorial services: one at Duncaster in Bloomfield CT on June 7, and the other on Block Island shortly afterwards. Contact an immediate family member for exact times and dates. Memorial donations in Lee's name can be made to: The Committee for the Great Salt Pond, PO Box 1092, Block Island RI 02807. For online condolences, please visit www.taylorandmodeen.com.

Shirley "Lee" Self Brotherhood

May 1, 2012