Doris Shapiro, 82
An unschooled philosopher who loved Motown music and the ocean, died Oct. 1 at the Heartland nursing home in Lauderhill, Fl. She was 82.
Known for her offbeat sense of humor, colorful style and generosity, the long-time Princeton resident cultivated many devoted friends of all ages.
Born Doris Mae Seidemann in Pittsburgh, Shapiro moved with her family to the Jersey Shore when she was very young. As a child, she read for hours on the jetties of Margate City and Ventnor. She also boasted of hearing Frank Sinatra sing on the Steel Pier in Atlantic City.
Growing up during Atlantic City’s heyday as a resort town, Shapiro remained under the spell of its snazzy nightclubs, grand hotels and boardwalk hokum throughout her life. She was particularly fond of Lucy the Elephant, a work of architectural whimsy built in 1881 south of Atlantic City. The six-story structure is now a National Historic Landmark.
In 1964, Shapiro would return to Atlantic City with her husband for the Democratic National Convention where she socialized with the Duke and Duchess of Windsor. It was a triumph for someone from a poor background who had not finished high school.
At 16, Shapiro left home to make a living in Washington, D.C. During World War II, she worked at the Government Printing Office. She told her children that she had a sweetheart who died in the war.
Later, Shapiro moved to New Brunswick, N.J. where she took a job as a switchboard operator at the Daily Home News. She also wrote a help column called Doris the Answer Girl. At the paper, she met her future husband, Lester Shapiro, a sports and political reporter. In 1952, the two wed in secret and later celebrated their marriage in a Jewish ceremony.
Together, the couple felled trees and cleared the land for a single-story home in Rutgers Heights, N.J. where the couple raised three children. For good luck, Shapiro gilded and hung a horseshoe unearthed from the property over a door in the new home.
She decorated the living room in an orange palette she described as "Early Halloween." An avid gardener, she also filled her suburban backyard with iris, day lilies and dozens of perennials.
The family moved to Princeton, N.J. in 1964 where Shapiro continued to struggle with an undiagnosed mood disorder, swinging between high spirits and depression never adequately treated.
That did not stop friends drawn to Shapiro’s native intelligence and sardonic worldview. Nor did illness prevent Shapiro from earning a GED in the mid 1970s.
For a brief period in the late 1970s, Shapiro also operated an antiques shop in Jobstown, N.J. chockablock with finds from flea markets and attics. In 1987, Shapiro moved to Pembroke Pines, Fl.
She is survived by children Stephanie Shapiro of Baltimore, Md., Roberta Shapiro of Pawtucket, R.I., Paul Shapiro of Geneva, Switzerland and five grandchildren. Her marriage ended in divorce.
A memorial service is planned for 3:00 PM, Nov. 22, 2008, at the Nassau Inn.

