Etta Mae Hand

Etta Mae Hand, 91, passed quietly with family on Tuesday, August 26, 2025. She is predeceased by her beloved husband, Bill; brother, Marshall; and cat, Midnight. She is survived by her children, Bill Jr. (Georgina), Terri (Mike), and Jonathan; her six grandchildren, Brittany, Kurtis, Rachael, Robert, Tynan, and Michael; and her close friends, Ellen McGinnis, Ann Sutcliffe and Betty Jane Kane.

There will be a small private service. The family requests donations to WoundedWarriorProject.org in lieu of flowers, online condolences may be placed at www.parselsfh.com.

Etta spent her life caring for others. She graduated from Methodist Hospital School of Nursing with her lifelong friend, Bette Sheets Wolf, then started as a nurse at Shore Memorial and became Director of Nursing before leaving to raise her family. In the early 80s she returned to nursing as the first Admissions Nurse for Bacharach Rehabilitation Institute, then Director of Nursing at Eastern Shore Convalescent Center. She returned to college when her children attended to earn a BSc in Sociology (Gerontology). She returned to Bacharach as Admissions Nurse for several more years before officially retiring. She provided years of end-of-life care for her mother, her aunt, and her husband. We are thankful for the years of attentive care she has received from her own loving caregivers.

Etta was the emotional center of the family, with all holidays centering around her (Christmas was a special favorite, visiting late in the day as “Santa Mom” with final gifts for everyone). She loved to read, craft and cook, and was a skilled (if offbeat) writer and poet of humorous works. She loved Disney World (esp. It’s a Small World) and the shore. When she could no longer visit the beach she had a small one built in her backyard to admire from her deck.

Etta is now reunited with her beloved Bill and is no doubt presenting him with a 17-year-long chore list.