ROCKPORT — Suzanne Bennett Voorhies, 88, passed away June 20, 2013, at Pen Bay Medical Center in Rockport.

She was born March 22, 1925, in the village of Babylon, N.Y., the daughter of Jacobus and Sarah Bennett Voorhies. She grew up with her brother, Peter, in Babylon, where she became a skilled and avid sailor. She attended Babylon High School and graduated from Barnard College in the class of 1946.

Following college, Sue was trained by George Papanicolaou, the originator of the "Pap test," to perform screenings for early detection of cervical cancer. She worked for four decades as a cytologist, contributing to the health of generations of women. She worked at hospitals in New York City, Long Island, N.Y., and in Maine, finishing her career at Pen Bay Medical Center.

Sue moved to Camden with her mother in 1972, and later built a home in Rockport. She recently moved to the Terraces at Quarry Hill in Camden.

Sue loved the Knox County area and had many adventures sailing West Penobscot Bay.

An early member of the Maine chapter of the American Rhododendron Society, Sue had served as secretary from 1993-1997. Her love for these plants is obvious to anyone who has seen her garden.

Her greatest love, however, was for Jesus Christ and the community of St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Camden. She was active in the church as a choir member, Eucharistic minister, officiant at the Daily Offices, scheduler of servers at the Eucharist, regular contributor to the parish newsletter, and member of the Library Committee. In the late 1990s she took vows as a solitary religious in service to St. Thomas' parish. As her strength and stamina began to ebb in recent years she found she was forced to cut back on many church responsibilities, but continued to participate in the ministry of the parish in any way she was able. She was dissatisfied with these limitations, but took comfort in the understanding that, in her words, "one of the disciplines of a regulated life is that inspired or not, you keep at it and God finds you in the desert all unbeknownst to you. He can be most active when he seems to be absent...."

She was preceded in death by her parents and brother. Sue is survived by her sister-in-law, Margaret Voorhies of Babylon, N.Y.; her nieces, Kathleen Voorhies Ryerson of Savannah, Ga., and Patricia Voorhies Schneider and her husband, David, of New York City; her nephew, Stephen Voorhies and his wife, Anna, of Fayetteville, Ark.; and her grand- nieces and grand-nephews, Nancy and Samuel Ryerson, Sarah Schneider, and Geoffrey, Daniel and Rachel Voorhies.

She will be deeply missed by those who knew and loved her.

A memorial service will be held at St. Thomas' Episcopal Church in Camden and will be announced later in the summer.

Condolences may be shared with the family at longfuneralhomecamden.com.

Arrangements are with Long Funeral Home & Cremation Service in Camden.