A sweet and gentle soul has passed into the arms of our Lord and has been added to heaven’s realm. Marta Ann Sloane, 71, of Orlando, Florida passed peacefully of natural causes on October 26, 2021.
Born October 7, 1950, in Buffalo New York, she was the eldest daughter of the late William E. Sloane, Jr and Betty P. Sloane of Stuart, Florida. Always a lover of the arts and literature, Marta was inspired to pursue a degree in Theatre Arts, receiving her B.A. from Rosary Hill college in Buffalo N.Y. Pursuing a local opportunity, she had an “extras” part in a James Caan movie “Hide in Plain Sight”, filmed in Buffalo in 1980.
She moved to Orlando and busily pursued different venues for her love of music and arts. She was active in her church choir and was part of the “Singing Christmas Tree” pageant for several years. She joined a Scottish dance troupe and loved performing with them. She read voraciously throughout her life, and never lost her love for the arts. She wrote poetry, short stories, and painted using several different media – it was her passion to always create beauty. She thoroughly enjoyed attending the many arts shows in central Florida and would never shy away from chatting up the artists.
Her love and compassion for animals was inherent all through her life. Marta was a soft touch to help animals, especially cats in need. She shared her home with 2 feline friends, who provided her with good company; a day with a good book and her beloved kitties on her lap was a perfect day.
A gentle soul, she loved the times she spent with her family on many occasions, always sharing Thanksgiving, Christmas, and visits in between. She is survived by her sister Gail M. Sloane and her husband Richard Cantrell of Tallahassee Florida, a brother William J. Sloane and his wife Alice K. Bogosian of Pittsford, New York, a brother Robert M. Sloane of East Aurora, New York, and a nephew Garvis W. Sloane of Denver, Colorado.
Throughout her life, she was always thoughtful of others and modeled the softness that this world often shuns. She “unfriended” gloom and doom on her social media page – and instead embraced love and kindness that she carried as her hope for this world. To paraphrase a parting thought, we would be encouraged to forgive others and ourselves in our faults and failings, to know we are doing the best that we can if we get up and try each opportunity we are given. We are to embrace faith, cultivate gratitude, and remember even the smallest kindness may mean everything to another.
“Let us then try what love can do to mend a broken world.” ― William Penn
In lieu of flowers, Donations in Marta’s memory can be made to the Best Friends Animal Society, Bestfriends.org.
There will be a funeral service for Marta on Friday, November 12th at 11:00 am in the Manning-Heffern Funeral Home, 68 Broadway, Pawtucket. Her burial will be in the family lot at Mt. St. Mary’s Cemetery, Pawtucket. The family will welcome friends from 10:00 am prior to the service.