Eleanor "Jimmie" Hymen Shapiro

Beloved wife of the late RADM Sumner Shapiro, USN, Ret., passed away peacefully on November 3 in Dupont, WA at the young age of 97. Daughter of Max and Evelyn Goldman Hymen, Jimmie spent her childhood in Lowell, MA. She graduated from Sargent College of Boston University and worked as a physical therapist until her marriage to Sumner “Shap” Shapiro of Nashua, NH in 1949.

Jimmie traveled overseas alongside her husband to his many Naval Intelligence assignments in Japan, Germany, England, and Russia making lasting friendships everywhere they lived. They moved with their three children a total of twenty-three times in Shap’s thirty-three year naval career, and it was Jimmie who always created a loving home in every new posting despite the challenges and disruptions in the life of a military family. Upon Shap’s retirement as Director of Naval Intelligence in 1982, they settled in McLean, VA, where she was active in the Jewish Council for the Aging and the Naval Officers Wives Club. Jimmie was an avid bridge player and enjoyed playing with groups in the Northern Virginia area. She relocated to Dupont, WA in 2017 to be near her daughters, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren.

She is survived by her loving son, Dr. Steven Shapiro and daughter-in-law, Carol (Conner) of York, PA; cherished daughters Martha Shapiro and Susan Shapiro of Gig Harbor, WA; adored grandchildren Laura (Christopher Nammour), Benjamin (Shu Li), Elizabeth (Patrick Long), and Justin Shapiro; treasured great-grandchildren Evelyn Martha, Sean Thomas, and Josephine Rose; her sister, Jean Wallace of Nashville, TN.; and her loving nieces and nephews.

Due to Covid-19 restrictions, burial at the United States Naval Academy Cemetery in Annapolis will be private. The family requests that any contributions in Jimmie’s name may be made to Friends of the Jewish Chapel at the USNA in Annapolis, MD.

To send flowers to the family or plant a tree in memory of Eleanor "Jimmie" Hymen Shapiro, please visit our floral store.