Paula Beaver Chipman, 84, formerly of Newtown, died peacefully May 28 in Bloomfield, Conn. She was born on July 5, 1932, in Champaign-Urbana, Ill., to Leila (West) and Paul Beaver and lived in Appleton, Wis., and Waycross, Ga., before moving as a teenager to New Orleans, La.

Mrs Chipman graduated from Isadore Newman High School in 1950 and Newcomb College in 1954 (then the coordinate women's college of Tulane University), majoring in biology. She was awarded a National Science Foundation Fellowship in 1954 and followed in her father's footsteps by doing her graduate work in parasitology. Mrs Chipman received her Master's degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, School of Public Health, in 1956.

She married David Chipman in 1955 and lived in Brooklyn and Staten Island, N.Y., before settling in Newtown, in 1961, where they raised their four children.

Mrs Chipman began teaching at Western Connecticut State University in 1973 as an adjunct instructor in the Department of Biology & Environmental Sciences. She subsequently became an associate professor in that department and for many years served as the coordinator of the university's medical technology program. She was a dedicated and popular professor who taught both microbiology and the art and science of working in a laboratory to thousands of students over her career.

When not teaching, she spent many happy summers at "the farm" in Chase Hollow in Bradford, Vt., playing games with her kids (and their friends), gardening, taking extended walks in search of wildlife and wildflowers, reading, and hosting regular gatherings of family and friends out at the picnic table. Mrs Chipman was a gracious and caring person who made everyone - from family members and longtime friends to new acquaintances - feel welcome, worthy, and cared for.

Her children and their spouses, John C. and Michele Chipman of Newtown; Paul S. and Tracy Chipman of Fort Myers, Fla.; Christine L. Chipman and Barry Scheinberg of Bloomfield.; and Richard B. and Liz Chipman of Concord, N.H.; and seven exceptional and well-loved grandchildren, Paul, Renzie, Abby, Molly, Joe, Jordan, and Meghan, survive her.

Mrs Chipman's dear friend and former sister-in-law, Wendy Chipman of Durham, N.C., and her infant grandson, Bennett David Chipman, predeceased her.

Her children, grandchildren, and extended family and friends will remember Mrs Chipman lovingly as a generous, kind, and unwaveringly supportive woman with an easy and infectious laugh, who will be deeply missed.

Interment will occur at a private ceremony in the Newtown Village Cemetery in Newtown at a later date.

Memorial donations may be made to the Lewy Body Dementia Association Inc, 912 Killian Hill Road SW, Lilburn GA 30047 and at lewybodydementia.org/donate; or to the American Horticultural Society, 7931 East Boulevard Drive, Alexandria VA 22308 and at connect.ahsgardening.org.

Condolences can be sent to Honan Funeral Home by visiting honanfh.com.