Dr. Vanessa A. Marshall, age 85, of Trumbull, CT died Wednesday, April 7, 2021 at the West Haven VA Medical Center. Born in Ocean City, NJ, she lived in Trumbull since 1987.
She was the only child of the late Gerald and Evelyn Ada (Jones) Marshall. A career military officer, Vanessa served twenty two years in the U.S. Army Nurse Corps, retiring as a Major. Her service included three years in Japan during the Vietnam conflict and later two years in Germany.
A life-long scholar, she earned a total of five academic degrees from Cornell, Yale and Harvard, including a Doctor of Science from the Harvard School of Public Health. After her military career, she went on to become a professor of nurse-midwifery at Yale, and then Director of the Graduate Program in Nurse-Midwifery at the University of Rhode Island. Upon retiring from academia, she returned to school to earn a Fine Arts degree from Housatonic Community College.
An adventurous world traveler, she explored the globe from Antarctica to Uzbekistan. She was a Life Member of the American Legion Post 143 in Fairfield, where she served as Finance Officer, Newsletter Editor and Post Service Officer. A burial with full military honors will be held at Arlington National Cemetery. In lieu of flowers, memorial contributions may be made to Americares, 88 Hamilton Avenue, Stamford, CT 06906. For information or to offer an online condolence please visit www.SpearFuneralHome.com
