July 21, 1944 – Dec. 9, 2012
A memorial Mass for Camille Bailey Severyn, a teacher of Spanish and an avid gardener, will be offered at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in St. Christopher’s Catholic Church, 2600 Niagara Falls Blvd., Town of Tonawanda.
Ms. Severyn died unexpectedly Dec. 9 in her Amherst home. She was 68.
Born in the Buffalo area, she grew up in Cheektowaga and attended Villa Maria High School. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Spanish from the University at Buffalo, where she was Homecoming Queen in 1965, and was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Peru in 1968. She also received a U.S. government grant to study in Cuba.
She lectured in Spanish at UB, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and Erie County College South Campus in Orchard Park.
She lived briefly in Ohio following her marriage to Robert Bailey and received a master’s degree in international affairs from Ohio University.
She taught Spanish at Mill Middle School in the Williamsville district, retiring in 1999. In retirement, she continued teaching Spanish at Catholic elementary schools, including Infant of Prague in Cheektowaga and St. James in Depew. She also tutored adults in Spanish and worked as a literary volunteer and in the UB Host Family Program.
She was a member of the Forest Stream Garden Club and tended some of the public gardens on Main Street in Williamsville. She also volunteered at many local theaters.
An accomplished accordion and piano player, she played at the Amherst Senior Center, where she was a member, and with the Amherst Saxophone Quartet.
She traveled extensively in Europe and South America. She often designed and made her own clothes.
A memorial Mass for Camille Bailey Severyn, a teacher of Spanish and an avid gardener, will be offered at 9:30 a.m. Thursday in St. Christopher’s Catholic Church, 2600 Niagara Falls Blvd., Town of Tonawanda.
Ms. Severyn died unexpectedly Dec. 9 in her Amherst home. She was 68.
Born in the Buffalo area, she grew up in Cheektowaga and attended Villa Maria High School. She earned her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in Spanish from the University at Buffalo, where she was Homecoming Queen in 1965, and was awarded a Fulbright Scholarship to study in Peru in 1968. She also received a U.S. government grant to study in Cuba.
She lectured in Spanish at UB, Thomas Jefferson University in Philadelphia and Erie County College South Campus in Orchard Park.
She lived briefly in Ohio following her marriage to Robert Bailey and received a master’s degree in international affairs from Ohio University.
She taught Spanish at Mill Middle School in the Williamsville district, retiring in 1999. In retirement, she continued teaching Spanish at Catholic elementary schools, including Infant of Prague in Cheektowaga and St. James in Depew. She also tutored adults in Spanish and worked as a literary volunteer and in the UB Host Family Program.
She was a member of the Forest Stream Garden Club and tended some of the public gardens on Main Street in Williamsville. She also volunteered at many local theaters.
An accomplished accordion and piano player, she played at the Amherst Senior Center, where she was a member, and with the Amherst Saxophone Quartet.
She traveled extensively in Europe and South America. She often designed and made her own clothes.