Arden Buckner Shelton passed away at her home in Riverdale, New York on December 6, 2023, at the age of 91. Born on October 3, 1932 in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania to Lloyd and Phiphine Buckner, she was raised in Newport News, Virginia, where she graduated as Class Valedictorian from Huntington High School. After attending Bennett College in Greensboro, South Carolina for a year, she transferred to Sargeant College at Boston University to pursue a degree in Physical Education. Graduating in 1954, she began her career at Northfield School in Northfield, Massachusetts, and then Howard University, in Washington D.C., where she met Marvin L. Shelton, a fourth-year medical school student. They married in 1956 and moved to Honolulu, Hawaii, where Dr. Shelton began his residency at Fort Tripler Army Hospital. After five years in Hawaii, they relocated to Fort Jackson, Columbia, South Carolina. In 1963, they moved to New York City, and settled in Riverdale, where Dr. Shelton established a practice in Orthopedic Surgery at Columbia Presbyterian Medical Center and Harlem Hospital. Arden earned a Masters of Education from Columbia University Teacher’s College, and taught physical education at Riverdale Country School, where her children attended school. She went on to earn a Master’s degree in Business Policy from Columbia Business School, work for the American Can Company in marketing, and the United Negro College Fund in development. 

Arden was a truly modern woman. She was a classically-trained soprano who performed around the United States and in Europe. She combined her development skills with a magnificent voice to give concerts at Avery Fisher Hall at Lincoln Center, Carnegie Hall, and Weill Recital Hall in New York City, the La Jolla Playhouse in San Diego, California, and The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in Washington D.C. to raise funds for the United Negro College Fund and other non-profit organizations devoted to the advancement of African Americans. She was a founding member of the Metro-Manhattan Chapter of the Links, and the Auxillary of the National Medical Association.

Arden was a lover and patron of the arts and culture. She was a docent at the Rockefeller Wing at the Metropolitan Museum of Art for over thirty years, specializing in the Art of Africa and Oceania, and she supported many art and dance organizations that focused on African American artists.  Arden Shelton was a woman of faith. She was a member of the Riverdale Presbyterian Church, and the St. James Church in Florence Italy, where after singing a hymn during a Sunday service, she was asked to perform at the U.S. Consulate in Florence, Italy on several occasions.

Arden Shelton is preceded in death by her husband of 48 years, Dr. Marvin L. Shelton, her parents, and her brother, Lloyd Buckner, Jr. She is survived by her daughters 

Dr. Yvonne A. Shelton (Michael Riggieri) of Northborough Massachusetts, LeAnn Shelton, AIA, Esq. (Charles Rudolph) of New York, NY, Dr. Marla Shelton-Lenhof (Stephane Lenhof), and son Marvin L. Shelton of Riverdale, her grandchildren, Brian, Carmen, Justin and Zed-Etienne and many beloved nieces, nephews and cousins. 

Visitation will be Saturday, December 16, 2023 from 2-5 PM at the Riverdale-on-Hudson Funeral Home. A memorial service will be held in early 2024.

In lieu of flowers donations may be made to the following organizations:

• Jeanne Wade Henningburg Scholarship for the Performing Arts at Montclair State University NJ

• Marvin L. Shelton, MD Memorial Lectureship at Columbia University Department of Orthopedic Surgery.