EAST MONTPELIER - Emily Virginia Neary, 71, of East Montpelier, died Tuesday, August 21, 2012 at home among family after a 43-year-long battle with cancer. The daughter of Virginia Marshall Chew and Thomas Gordon Chew, Emily was born in Washington D.C. on February 8, 1941. She attended George Washington High School, class of 1958, and went on to attend George Washington University from 1958 to 1961 studying business skills. She married the love of her life, Daniel A. Neary, Jr., on November 2, 1963 in Arlington, VA. They moved to their present home on Gould Hill Road in November 1967 where they spent their long marriage as close friends and raised beloved twin daughters, Carla Occaso and her Jessica Neary. She adored her grandson, Kirby Occaso, who was the light of her life. Emily loved Victorian literature, traveling, gardening, poetry, politics and, most of all, being with family. She kept a happy home and hosted many wonderful holiday dinners. She also had a busy career outside of the home beginning in 1956 when she as a teenager worked as a nurse's aide candy striper at Alexandria Hospital in Alexandria, Virginia. She then worked for the summer at Bon Marche Department Store in Seattle, Washington as a marking clerk before returning to the east coast o work at Congressional Quarterly from 1960-1963, when she met Daniel A. Neary, Jr. She had a continuous career in the secretarial field working for the Vermont State Labor Council, Vermont Center for Independent Living, and finally, her most fulfilling and cherished position for the Legislative Council as staff aide for the Senate Natural Resources and Energy Committee at the Vermont State House from 1987 through 2010. She loved her coworkers, supervisors and politicians working to make law each legislative session. Emily had an unimaginable kindness for others, which she displayed by remembering a wide circle of those around her with cards and gifts on birthdays, holidays and special occasions. She will be remembered for her vibrant spirit, her inspirational sweetness and her beautiful smile. She will be deeply missed by all those who knew her. Emily leaves behind husband, Daniel; daughters Jessica and Carla, and Carla's husband, Ray Occaso; brother, Robert M. Chew, and her grandson Kirby Occaso. She was predeceased by her brother, Thomas Chew; parents Virginia and Thomas Chew, and stepmother Mary Chew. In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation in Emily's name to The Vermont Food Bank 33 Parker Road, Wilson Industrial Park, Barre, VT 05641 or online at www.vtfoodbank.org. Please include a note that your donation is in Emily's memory. An informal celebration of her life will be held on Sunday, September 2 from 3:30 to 5:30 in Hubbard Park in Montpelier at the new shelter. Those wishing to send on-line condolences may do so at www.guareandsons.com