Naomi J Small

Naomi Jean “Snooky” Small passed away on March 17, 2015 due to complications from diabetes at Allegheny General Hospital in the company of her family.

She was born March 11, 1935 and was a lifelong resident of Beaver, Pennsylvania, daughter of the late Ruth and Milton “Bus” Small, sister of John A. “Jack” Small. She had just celebrated her 80 ^th birthday with family.

As a child she attended the one-room Richmond schoolhouse on Dutch Ridge Road and graduated from Beaver High School in 1953. She was looking forward to her 62nd high school class reunion this year.

She will be remembered by all for her sparkling smile and laugh.

After high school she graduated from the Central Technical Institute in Kansas City and began her career at Capital Airlines (now United). She loved style and beauty and worked as a cosmetician at Kauffman’s Beauty Salon, Rochester in the 1970’s and early 1980’s.

She is most famously remembered as the lifeguard at the Beaver Baby Pool and “Tiny Tots” swim instructor for 15 summers. She later worked as the receptionist at Miracle Ear and Sears Optical at Beaver Valley Mall.

Snooky met her husband of 60 years, Ted Small, at a teen dance at Rochester Turners and had a lifelong love of dancing and dance music, from American Bandstand to Motown. Her daughters have fond memories of watching Beatles Movies at Tusca Drive-In Movie Theater with her, bicycling across town to the swimming pool every day in the summer, and singing along to 70’s Top 40 radio together.

She was the first cheerleading sponsor for the Brighton Township Bears “Midget” football team in the early 1960’s; she and Ted co-hosted popular teen dances at Brighton Township Fire Hall in the same era.

Mrs. Small received a successful kidney transplant in 2009 and lived to enjoy 6 more years with her husband, three daughters, and four grandchildren.

She was preceded in death by her mother, Ruth B. Small, her father, Milton A. “Bus” Small, her uncle Sanford “Santy” A. Small, and her nephew John “Jackie” Small.

She is survived by her husband, Theodore D. “Ted” Small, Jr., daughters Sandra Noone (husband Kevin Noone), Woodbridge, VA, Sherri Small, Beaver, Stacy Small-Lorenz (husband Eric Lorenz), Silver Spring, MD, granddaughter Elizabeth Small, Beaver, grandsons Sean & Shiloh Noone, both of VA, and Avery Lorenz, MD, brother John “Jack” Small (wife Doris), Madison, OH, and many nieces and nephews.

Friends will be received Friday from 2 to 4 pm and 6 to 8 pm in the Noll Funeral Home, Inc., 333 Third St., Beaver where a service will be conducted Saturday at 11:00 am. Entombment will follow at the Beaver Cemetery Mausoleum. Online condolences may be shared at nollfuneral.com.

Memorial donations may be made to National Kidney Foundation , 30 East 33rd Street, New York, NY 10016 ( www.kidney.org ) or to the UPMC Starzl Transplantation Institute Development Department, Forbes Tower, Suite 8084, 3600 Forbes Avenue at Meyran Avenue, Pittsburgh, PA  15213  (https://donation.upmc.com/donation/)