Caroline Merrifield, 89, taught at Sanford High for 23 years

SANFORD - Caroline Merrifield, a Sanford native who shared her devotion to education with her family and with hundreds of her English students, died Tuesday after a long illness. She was 89.

A 1938 Bates College graduate and mother of three, Mrs. Merrifield taught for 23 years at Sanford High School and also taught evening classes for adults seeking an equivalency degree.

Mrs. Merrifield grew up in one of Sanford's most prominent families. Her father, Alpheus Hanscom, was a local dentist and a longtime member of the school committee who made sure his children went to good colleges. Two of her brothers attended Bowdoin College, while she and another brother went to Bates, her father's alma mater.

Mrs. Merrifield carried that love of education into her career, first teaching English and Latin in Harvard, Mass., then returning home to teach at Sanford High until she retired in the 1970s.

"She was involved in student council. She really got to know kids," said her daughter Constance Perry of Orono. "She also taught in adult ed and really enjoyed the students there."

Mrs. Merrifield raised her son and two daughters alone after her husband died in 1956.

"She was very strong and very strong-willed and had a very clearly defined sense of what was right and what was wrong," said her daughter-in-law, Aleida Merrifield of Springvale.

Jane Webb of Springvale, who knew Mrs. Merrifield and her family for many years, said she was extremely devoted to her students, even more than many people realized.

"Don't get me wrong, but she was a do-gooder, and nobody ever knew about it. She would do things real quietly, especially when it came to kids who needed a boost," Webb said. "She would challenge them. They don't make teachers like that anymore."

Webb's husband, Jack, taught at the high school with Mrs. Merrifield and worked with her when he was in charge of adult ed and she taught evening classes.

"Whenever my husband had things to put in the newspaper, he always took it to Caroline to correct the English," she said. "Then she would lecture him on his commas and punctuation marks."

Mrs. Merrifield also was involved in community institutions such as the YMCA, the First Baptist Church and the Goodall Hospital Auxiliary. "She was the first woman on the Sanford Zoning Board of Appeals," Perry said.

After her retirement, Mrs. Merrifield traveled with friends to places such as Europe and South America. And every morning at 6, she headed to the Y to swim and meet with friends.

"She loved people," said her brother, Ward Hanscom of Sanford.