Doris Alverta Sterling

Doris “Pat” Aquilla-Carrington Sterling—genealogist, gardener, traveler, techie, and arts enthusiast—entered eternal life on Thursday, July 16, 2020. Born in 1946, Doris was raised by Amelia and John Combash and educated at St. Peter Claver School, St. Frances Academy, the College of Notre Dame of Maryland (B.A.), and Loyola College (M.A.). These institutions introduced her to her three lifelong sister-friends, Delores Lee (Notre Dame), Selby Long (St. Frances), and Cheryl Ward (St. Peter Claver). Doris labored hard all her life, up until the very end. After high school she served in the U.S. Navy, and then worked at Johns Hopkins Hospital. Later she became a speech and language pathologist, first in the Baltimore City Public Schools and finally at the Hearing and Speech Agency. She was a stellar genealogist who traced her lineage as far back as 1808, not bad for an African American (thanks to slavery, many records are incomplete or unavailable). For a time, she managed the website of the Baltimore Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society. She was also a member of the Scribblers—a writing group—and especially proud of work by her writer friends Jacqueline Crabtree, Frank Long, Merredith Perkins, and Linda Wharton. Doris found much peace through gardening and was proud of becoming a certified master gardener in her 40s. Each winter found her designing her plot and seeds for the coming spring and summer. Favorites were tomatoes, cucumbers, and Swiss chard. She was a longtime member of Baltimore’s Center Stage and saw many Broadway productions in NYC. She adored Les Misérables and the Phantom of the Opera (and tolerated Kinky Boots and Rent—her daughter Leslie’s favorites). Doris always longed to travel, and after Leslie finished high school, she set about exploring the country and the world, from Alaska to Florida and Colombia to Ireland. She tapped her fingers to flamenco in Barcelona (overcoming a longtime fear of air travel to get there), enjoyed high tea in London, saw ships squeeze through the Panama Canal, and touched the Paris gravestones of Edith Piaf and Richard Wright. She always returned home to stock up on red-hot jawbreakers and add extra salt to her potato chips (but somehow had low blood pressure). She lived for videos and pictures from her grand-kitties, Frodo and Bentley Kowalski. Doris made a difference in the lives of many. She is survived by cousins Nancy Aquilla, James Briscoe, Sylvia Goodman, and Anita Shelton, and their descendants. Her spirit is carried on by her adopted mother, Willa Turman; her sister-friends; her treasured angel, Claire Barnhill; and her adopted daughter, Stefanie Kowalski. Most of all, she was devoted to and beloved by her daughter (and favorite traveling partner), Leslie Robinson. She will be dearly missed. In her memory, donations may be made to HopeWell Cancer Support (P.O. Box 755, Brooklandville, MD 21022) or the Baltimore Afro-American Historical and Genealogical Society (BAAHGS, P.O. Box 9366, Baltimore, MD 21228).

Doris Alverta Sterling

July 16, 2020 - July 16, 2020