Meredith Victorie Coolidge

Meredith Victorie McBride Coolidge (“Merry”) passed away peacefully after a brief illness. Born in Elgin, Illinois in 1942, Merry was the youngest daughter of Thurlow and Harriet (Hurlburt) McBride. Her father’s successful career in business led the family to the Philadelphia area, and Merry cherished her memories of an idyllic childhood growing up in beautiful Bucks County. She also treasured her early education at Buckingham Friends School and the dear friends she made there. For high school, Merry was a boarding student at The Principia in St. Louis, Missouri, and a member of the first class to graduate from the “Country Campus” in Town & Country. Her Principia experience also resulted in many deep and lasting friendships for which she was forever grateful. Merry attended the University of Pennsylvania where she earned a degree in English in 1964, her first job following graduation being in an office of GE Aerospace, a division of General Electric. Friends from church facilitated an introduction to David Coolidge who had recently moved to the Philadelphia area, and the two were married six months after they first met. Early in their marriage they moved to Rome, Italy for a year so David could continue to study art and painting in advance of his career as a watercolorist. Upon their return to the United States, they settled in suburban Philadelphia to start a family of their own, and Merry focused on raising her two boys who attended The Haverford School. In addition to being an active member of the Mothers’ Club at her boys’ school, Merry did some part-time office work at Bryn Mawr College and volunteered for a variety of local organizations. In 1985 Merry and her family relocated to Naples, Florida where she felt drawn to residential real estate and a career of her own. Merry loved working with clients to match the right buyer with the right property, and her personal touch, dedication, and tireless work ethic resulted in many successful and appreciated transactions. Merry received numerous awards recognizing her noteworthy productivity throughout her career. Merry never truly retired, as she chose in recent years to spend more time at home and with family. Merry always remained open to advising and consulting when someone asked for help, friends and strangers alike. Merry will always be remembered for being a woman of principle, forever genuine, and exceedingly devoted to her family and friends. Having spent much of her life in and around Philadelphia, Merry was tremendously patriotic, eternally grateful for the goodness of American values and ideals enshrined in the Declaration of Independence and the US Constitution. Merry was deeply committed to her faith in Christian Science and was an active church member in Ardmore, Pennsylvania and Naples, Florida. Of greatest importance to her, above all, was her family. Nothing brought her more joy than sharing time with her five grandchildren, particularly during special occasions, events, and accomplishments. Merry is survived by her husband of 57 years, David; son Scott and his wife Shelley (Azusa, CA) and their children Emily, Daniel and Cameron; son Terry and his wife Karen (St. Louis, MO) and their children Ruth and Joe. She is also survived by her sister Bonnie Dail of St. Louis, Missouri and her family as well as the family of her late sister Patricia Weber. A private family service will be held. In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the following non-profit organizations that Merry supported: Daystar, Inc. - Davie, FL (https://www.daystarfl.org/donate) Camps Newfound and Owatonna - Harrison, ME (https://www.newfound-owatonna.com/giving/) First Church of Christ, Scientist - Naples, FL (https://www.christiansciencenaples.com) The Humane Society of Naples - Naples, FL (https://hsnaples.org)

Meredith Victorie Coolidge

September 29, 1942 - January 22, 2024