Sydney Ann Wiley, 77, passed away on Nov. 2, 2019 with her sons by her side.

Sydney was born on March 23, 1942 in West Hartford, Connecticut, the daughter of the late Lewis and Kay Raney Giffin. She was raised in  West Hartford, and went on to attend the Rhode Island School of Design where she graduated with a bachelor of fine arts. While attending college she met her future husband. Jay was a student at Brown University.

She married Jay Wiley of Longmeadow, Massachusetts in 1960. Syd, Jay and their boys followed Jay’s career with Mobil Chemical living in several states as far west as Oklahoma,  before retiring to Maine in 1999.

They became members of the Down East Yacht Club and enjoyed sailing their 42-foot sailboat (FirstLight) until Jay’s death in 2007.

Syd is survived by her sons, James Wiley and his wife Brenda (Sandburg) of Colorado Springs, Colorado, and their daughters, Julia and Grace; and Benjamin Wiley and his wife Brett (Hugel) of Broomfield, Colorado, and their children, Emma and Cole; four sisters-in-law, Majorie McClellan of Tellico Plains, Tennessee, Dorothy Wiley of Pullman, Washington, Faryl Wiley of Brunswick, Maine and Diane Giffin of LaPorte, Colorado, and nieces and nephews of Littleton, Massachusetts, Orca Island, Washington, and Red Dear, Alberta, Canada. She was predeceased by her parents and brother, James Giffin.

Sydney pursued her passion for art throughout her life. She specialized in watercolor and batik, but quickly  mastered any medium she put her creative mind to. She was a true artist and loved to immerse herself in her work and to express herself through the pieces she created. Her works graced many festivals, galleries, and shows throughout the east coast.

Later in life, she was lovingly nicknamed the “Button Queen of the East.” She enjoyed collecting antique buttons, which she arranged into custom-themed artistic lots, then sold online to people around the world. Sydney loved spending time with her family the most. Whether it was her family’s trips to visit her in Maine a few times a year, or her annual Mother’s Day pilgrimage to Las Vegas with her two sons, her time spent with family was something she cherished.

She was educated, witty, kind and generous. Sydney was also stoic and worried about others before herself and was quick to put their problems before her own. She was a constant light in her family’s lives and she will be greatly missed by all that knew and loved her.

A memorial service will be held on Friday, Nov. 8 at 10 a.m. at Hall Funeral Home and Tribute Center, 975 Wiscasset Road, Boothbay.

Hall’s of Boothbay has care of the arrangements. To extend online condolences, please visit hallfuneralhomes.com