Shirley R. (Pfisterer) Bradley

Shirley R. (Pfisterer) Bradley, 87, passed away Jan. 9, 2015, surrounded by her loving family, after a long and courageous battle with lung cancer. She was preceded in death by her beloved husband of 65 years, Earle C. Bradley, who died Oct. 3, 2015. She was born in Springfield Feb. 19, 1928, the daughter of the late Henry and Helen (Peterhansel) Pfisterer, and was predeceased by her sisters Barbara Kirby, Linda Pfisterer, and Clare Johnson. Shirley graduated from Commerce High School in Springfield in 1945, and from Springfield Hospital School of Nursing in June 1949. She began her career as a staff nurse at Wesson Women�s Hospital in 1949, and later moved to Springfield Hospital (now Baystate Medical Center.) She attended classes at AIC, and in 1984 received her Associate Degree in Nursing from Charter Oaks College in CT. In 1969, while working as a nurse educator at Baystate, she became the first nurse in Western MA to specialize in the emerging field of infection control. This was the start of her phenomenal career in infection control. Shirley was a founding member of APIC (Association for Practitioners in Infection Control), was a board member of APIC, and was its National President 1977-78. Under her leadership, the organization grew to include 39 chapters around the country. She was a member of APIC�s Local Advisory Council 1981-84, and was APIC�s Historian 1981-84. In 1978 she attended the first international conference on infection control held at the European office of the World Health Organization in Copenhagen, Denmark, and was appointed international secretary. In 1983 Shirley was involved in the formation of the International Federation of Infection Control (IFIC), and was appointed its Chairman in 1985. She served as IFIC's Chairman of the Board until 1989. She retired from Baystate Medical Center on Oct. 1, 1987, but will be remembered for her contributions to the discipline of infection control. Her work has provided a firm foundation for infection control practice, lessons in leadership, and the example of a strong professional role model. These gifts apply beyond the realm of infection control and serve to enrich all professional disciplines. Her legacy is received with gratitude by those who have since become involved with infection control and will be treasured and preserved. She was a loving and caring mother who always put her family first, always the person who was there in our lives with love and support. She will be truly missed. She loved to travel, and traveled extensively with her husband, and family, both nationally and internationally. She cherished annual ski trips with her family, and the annual trips to Maui she made with Earle and other family members for many years. She never gave up her nursing skills, to the end she was always concerned about caring for others. She was the beloved mother of Joyce Pennington and her husband Scot of Concord NH, Kenneth Bradley of Ashburn VA, and the late Ronald T. Bradley of Springfield, who passed away in 2013, caring mother-in-law of Deborah A. Smith of Springfield, devoted grandmother of Holly Bradley, Audrey Mills, Samuel Pennington, Kristen Carwile, and Nicole Bradley, and great-grandmother of Elizabeth and Connor Greenwood, Jacob Carwile, and Kyle Lassonde. She also leaves her dear brother-in-law, Verne Cummings, of Enfield CT, and his children. The funeral will be held Wednesday at 10am from the Agawam Congregational Church 745 Main St Agawam. Burial will be private at the Agawam Veteran�s Cemetery. Calling hours will be held Tuesday from 4-7 at the Toomey-O�Brien Funeral Home 1043 Westfield St West Springfield. We will be forever grateful to the staff at Loomis Lakeside at Reed�s Landing, and to Baystate Hospice, for the compassionate and loving care provided to Shirley at the end of her life. Memorial contributions may be made to Baystate Hospice, 50 Maple St, Springfield MA 01102.