Zelda M. 'Peg' Tobin, RN

MILTON - Zelda M. "Peg" Tobin, RN, of Milton, passed away peacefully on Sunday, Sept. 27, after a brief stay at Milford Memorial Hospital. She was 90. Mrs. Tobin was born April 19, 1919, in Accident, Md., daughter of the late Harry Earl and Emma (Hochstedler) Speicher. She graduated from Greenwood High School and earned her RN at Delaware Division in Wilmington, where she met her future husband, Thomas J. Tobin, MD. In 1947, she and Dr. Tobin established a family medical practice and served the Milton Community for many years before her husband's death in 1964. Mrs. Tobin went on to serve Delaware residents, throughout Sussex County, as a Public Health Nurse for 16 years. She was assigned to the Edward W. Pyle Service Center in Roxanna when it opened in 1974 and served as the principal nurse there until she retired in 1982. She was a proud resident of Milton for more than sixty years. She was active in the community throughout her life. She served in the Milton PTA when her children were in school, worked with Little League and the Brownies, and participated in many other community activities. She served as a volunteer at Casa San Francisco after her retirement and continued taking blood pressures well into her 80's. She was a member of St. John's Catholic Church, Milford for sixty years. She was absolutely devoted to her family, children and granddaughter, Mei. Her interests were varied. She was a skilled musician and played the accordion and piano by ear. In the late 30's she played locally and won a regional competition on the Major Bowes Amateur Hour on NBC and CBS, American Radio's best-known talent show and went to New York City for national competition. She knitted and crocheted afghans. She loved china painting. Her hand painted Christmas ornaments will be cherished by family and friends for years to come. She was a talented artist and painted many watercolor and oil paintings. She loved her home and the squirrels and birds (especially bluebirds) that she watched daily. She may have been happiest when gardening, an activity she pursued into her 80s. She enjoyed traveling. She went to Bermuda and Hawaii with her dear friend, Eleanor Rae Campbell Warrington. For her 80th birthday, her son Tom took her to France. In addition to her parents and husband, four brothers (Robert, Randall, Howard and Everett Speicher) and a sister (Iva Clendaniel), all from the Greenwood-Bridgeville area, preceded her in death. She is survived by four children: son Thomas J. Tobin, Jr. and wife Aileen W. Tobin, PhD, of Baltimore, daughter Margaret A. Tobin of Philadelphia, son Patrick M. Tobin of Hoboken, and son John E. Tobin and wife Hon. Rev. Elisa C. Diller and granddaughter Mei Xuan Tobin of Newark. Funeral Services will be held at 1 p.m., Saturday, October 3rd in the chapel of Short Funeral Services, 416 Federal Street, Milton where friends may call after 11 a.m. In lieu of flowers, the family requests donations be made in memory of Zelda M. "Peg" Tobin to Bayhealth Foundation, 640 South State Street, Dover, DE 19901, for the Bayhealth Medical Center Healthcare Scholarship Program. Donations will be used to provide financial assistance to individuals pursuing nursing or allied health education in Zelda M. "Peg" Tobin's name.