Anne C. Moore, 97, Was Active in Church Work

Anne (Childress) Moore, 97, of Farmington, Conn., died Thursday, May 15, at the John Dempsey Hospital in Farmington. The eldest of four daughters of the late Avent and Madeline Mackay Childress of Scarsdale, N.Y., she was a 1925 graduate of the Spence School in New York city, after which she was a buyer for Bonwit Teller and a fashion model at Bergdorf Goodman, both in Manhattan.

In 1929 she was married to Edward Gillette Selden, and was active in coordinating numerous events, theatrical performances and fashion shows for various charitable organizations. Mr. Selden died young in 1938, leaving his wife and two small children. In 1941, Mrs. Moore (then Selden) married Dr. Gray Carter of Greenwich, just months before he joined the Yale Medical Team in the European Theatre in World War II. After the war and they settled in Greenwich, Conn., where Dr. Carter continued his medical practice and became chief of staff at the Greenwich Hospital, and she was an active volunteer in the Greenwich community, working devotedly for the Greenwich Hospital Auxiliary, Christ Episcopal Church and St. Barnabas Church.

Dr. Carter died in l968. In l973 she married Maxwell Moore of Farmington, in the First Church of Christ, Congregational, and they had many wonderful years of devoted marriage, spending time in their Farmington home, on Martha's Vineyard, and in Naples, Fla., before she was widowed again in December of 1994. She continued her strong Christian support of the First Church, participating in many of the church's activities, and was also active in her summertime church, Union Chapel of Oak Bluffs, where she was a member of the board of governors. She lived a full and vibrant life, and her great grace, charm and Christian spirit have enriched all who knew her.

She is survived by scores of admiring friends and relations, including her daughter and son in law, Mr. and Mrs. Douglas Norton Reed of Buffalo, N.Y.; her son, Edward Gillette Selden Jr. of Norwalk; her sister, Mary Adair Moore of North Carolina; her stepdaughter, Leslie Carter of Hampden; her stepchildren, Benjamin and Paddy Moore, Martha Moore, Gay and Art Nelson, all of Martha's Vineyard, and Alexander and Mary Moore of Providence, R.I.; three grandchildren and two great-grandchildren, and 15 Moore step-grandchildren and 12 step-great-grandchildren. She was predeceased by two sisters, Mrs. Thaddeus Edmund Beck Jr. (Madeline Childress) and Mrs. Peyton Claiborne Auxford (Sarah Childress).

A memorial service will be held on Saturday, May 31, at 11 a.m. at the First Church of Christ, Congregational, in Farmington. Interment will private at the convenience of the family. In lieu of flowers, the family would appreciate contributions to First Church of Christ, Congregational, 75 Main street, Farmington CT 06032. Porter's Funeral Service in Kensington is in charge of arrangements.