Stacey Del Bene, city school teacher

Stacey K. Del Bene, a Baltimore City elementary school teacher, died of breast cancer Sunday at her Reisterstown home. She was 51.

Born Stacey Kimmett in Baltimore and raised on Westbury Road in Lutherville, she attended Lutherville Elementary School and was a 1978 graduate of Towson High School, where she was a cheerleader. She earned bachelor's and master's degrees in education from Towson University.

She then began teaching in the city school system. After being assigned to Linwood and Gardenville elementary schools, she taught at Govans Elementary for more than 15 years.

"Her children were her life," said her brother, Scott Kimmett of Marriottsville. "The most important thing for her was the happiness of everyone else. My sister personified love."

Mrs. Del Bene vacationed in Fenwick Island, Del., where she organized a group of friends and family who began spending two weeks every summer there many years ago. Family members said the initial group of 25 people grew to 130. They represented five families who rented more than a dozen separate houses.

"That was her court, and she was the queen of the group," her brother said. "The doors were always open in everybody's house."

Mrs. Del Bene also took an interest in her children's sports events. For many years, she was treasurer of the Lutherville-Timonium Recreation Council. "She was very good at organizing. She was just a doer," her brother said. "She was always on the go."

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. Saturday at St. Paul's Lutheran Church, 1609 Kurtz Ave. in Lutherville, where she was a member.

In addition to her brother, survivors include her husband of 27 years, Thomas J. Del Bene, who owns a lawn service business; two sons, Christopher Del Bene and Michael Del Bene, both of Reisterstown; two daughters, Lauren Del Bene of Towson and Sarah Del Bene of Reisterstown; and her parents, George "Bucky" and Patricia Kimmett of Lutherville.

jacques.kelly@baltsun.com