Cynthia Eileen Oakley, died peacefully on Tuesday, March 17, 2026. She was born on October 17, 1937, on the island of Barbados, West Indies, to Lionel Fitzgerald and Adeline Eileen Cadogan.
Cynthia was known for her beautiful smile, kindness, and sense of humor, and made everyone feel loved and welcomed. Someone recently described her as being a “light” and when they walked away, they felt warmer and brighter. Cynthia always had an inner strength and heart for people less fortunate or in difficult circumstances. She was the one that people instinctively reached out to when they were in a state of crisis. Even as a girl in her late teens, she successfully assisted in a rescue effort to free a young girl from an abusive household, into a safe home with family in America.
After graduating from Alexandra High School and working as a teacher, Cynthia came to America in 1957 where she lived with her older sister, Colleen, in Brooklyn, NY. She attended Drake Business School and worked in various administrative and bookkeeping positions in New York City until she retired in 1996.
In January 1959, she married her “Sweets”, Samuel Eleazar Oakley, and later that year they welcomed their twin daughters Theresa Cecile and Selma Yvonne. The family, along with her stepdaughter, Marcia, lived in Queens, New York. Samuel and Cynthia moved to Franklin Park, New Jersey in 1995. After Samuel’s passing in 2016, she moved to Ponte Vedra, Florida to live with her daughter, Theresa, and son-in-law, Sheldon Graham – loving her life, new neighborhood and friends.
Taking care of and spending time with her husband and children was Cynthia’s greatest passion. She always said, “I was blessed from the beginning - the best parents, the best siblings, and the best husband and children you could ever ask for in the world!” Cynthia loved the Lord - a faithful follower of Jesus Christ, and lifelong member of the Episcopalian Church. She instilled that same love of Christ in her daughters. Every morning Cynthia sat with God and her devotions and would then text the morning’s Bible verses out to many young family members and close friends. Cynthia enjoyed traveling in the U.S.A. and overseas and cruises. She loved listening to smooth jazz and had a voracious appetite for playing online games. She especially enjoyed spending holidays and special celebrations with family and close friends.
Cynthia was predeceased by her husband, Samuel; parents Lionel and Eileen; brothers Wilfred and David Cadogan; sisters Marjorie Colleen Cole and Selma Cadogan; and son-in-law Gary Keith Harris. She will be greatly missed by her daughters Theresa and Selma; sister Barbara Howard; son-in-law Sheldon Graham; stepdaughter Marcia Austin; nephews Lionel Cadogan (Barbara) and Ronald Cole; nieces Vivien Yolanda Stone (Jerome) and Karen Daugherty, and numerous grandnieces, grandnephews, cousins, relatives and friends.
Florida Memorial Service
Friday, March 27, 2026
Service: 11:00 am
St. Francis in-the-Field Episcopal Church
895 Palm Valley Rd.
Ponte Vedra, FL 32081
For those who wish to attend remotely via livestream - Link to be added shortly
Reception to follow at the church. All are welcome.
Hotel Suggestion for out-of-town friends and family:
Hilton Garden Inn in Ponte Vedra Sawgrass
45 Tournament Players Club Blvd
Ponte Vedra Beach, FL 32082
(904) 280-1661
New Jersey Memorial Service and Interment:
Saturday, April 11, 2026
Service and Interment: 10:30 am
Franklin Memorial Park, 1800 State Route 27
North Brunswick, NJ 08902
Repast: Follows Service
Holy Trinity Lutheran Church
1640 Amwell Road
Somerset, NJ 08873
732-873-2888
Hotel Suggestion for out-of-town friends and family:
Hampton Inn & Suites Somerset
240 Atrium Drive
Somerset, NJ 08873
732-867-5377
Dress Attire:
Please dress comfortably for the weather. Cynthia loved shades of red and fuchsia, so feel free to wear her favorite color or include a splash of red as an accessory. Traditional funeral all-black is not necessary.
In lieu of flowers, please consider a donation to one of Cynthia’s favorite charities:
- Salvation Army (https://www.salvationarmyusa.org/)
- St. Joseph’s Indian School (https://www.stjo.org/)
- Disabled American Veterans (DAV) (https://www.ihelpveterans.org/)
- St. Francis in-the-Field Episcopal Church (https://stfrancispvb.org/)
