Sylvia Melanie (Hand) Pott passed away peacefully, surrounded by her four children and her extended family, on June 23, 2024, at the age of 93. Sylvia was known for her joyful spirit, her kind heart, an ardent appreciation of the natural world, and an enduring love for music and singing.
Central to her many years on this earth were her marriage and family, many close friendships, and an overall zeal for living. Not slowing down, even after a recent cancer diagnosis, she enthusiastically went through with a planned trip to Oregon to visit family, returning home in late May with smiles and cherished memories.
Sylvia Hand was born on March 7, 1931, to David Hand and Eleanor (Foote) Hand, in Germany, where her father had a research fellowship at the University of Heidelberg. Returning to the US when she was three, Sylvia grew up in Scarsdale, Ithaca, and Geneva, New York, in a family that prized education and sailing.
Her love for the sea led to a love for swimming, and she spent her summers between years at Swarthmore College as a counselor and swimming teacher at summer camps on Cape Cod. After college, Sylvia met her husband Gordon Pott, in Summit, New Jersey.
Sylvia earned a Master’s Degree in Early Childhood Education from Cornell University, which led to a part-time career in a number of early childhood teaching and other education-related positions. Sylvia and Gordon married in 1955, eventually settling in Summit to raise four children.
Feeling the lure of coastal living, Sylvia and Gordon retired to Orleans, Massachusetts, in 1995, not far from the site of Sylvia’s old summer camp on Crystal Lake.
Sylvia’s nearly 30 years on the Cape were filled with visits from children and grandchildren, the fostering of many dear friendships, playing tennis in the summer and paddle tennis in the winter, swimming nearly every day from May through October in lakes, the bay, and the ocean, volunteering with her beloved golden retriever as a canine ambassador, taking courses at the local library, singing with the NoteAbles musical group (and performing for nursing homes and community organizations), participating with the local PEO chapter, and being active at the First Congregational Church of Chatham, Massachusetts. Her faith in God and love for all people were strongly influenced by her mother’s Quaker upbringing and Sylvia’s deep connection with various congregations throughout her lifetime.
Sylvia was predeceased by her beloved husband Gordon, in 2016, and son-in-law Paul
Benson of Andover, in 2013. She is survived by her children: Cindy Benson of Andover; Ken
(Lenore) Pott of Chappaqua, New York; David Pott (Alix von Auenmueller) of Erwinna, Pennsylvania; and Tom Pott (Jenny Horvath) of Gold Beach, Oregon; seven grandchildren; five great-grandchildren; and her brother Clifford Hand of Honolulu, Hawaii.
A memorial service was held on October 13 at First Congregational Church of Chatham. Donations in Sylvia’s memory may be made to Friends of Snow Library (PO Box 481, Orleans, MA 02653) or The NoteAbles (c/o David Bryan, Treas., 157 So. Orleans Rd., Orleans, MA 02653).