Pamela Riley

Pamela Riley (nee Jones), Ph.D. of Westborough, MA passed away peacefully on January 4th, 2026, surrounded by loved ones following a brief illness.

Born January 7, 1956 in Wallasey Merseyside, United Kingdom she took any opportunity to read and learn something new. She furthered her education at the University of Bath in England and graduated in 1977 with a degree in pharmacy.

After moving to the US in 1981, she eventually found herself at the University of Kansas where she earned her Ph.D. in medicinal chemistry. Following her degree, she had a successful career in scientific research helping to develop medicines to improve patients lives. A fierce believer in childhood education and women in STEM, she believed there was nothing that could not be done without a little research and a lot of will. While she would never tell you how to do something, she was happy to provide the insight and tools you need to figure it out for yourself. And of course, a hot cup of tea (milk- no sugar) could fix any problem.

After a fulfilling career, she was finally able focus on her other hobbies: baking, knitting, and making cards for her loved ones on her cherished cricut machine. At Christmas you could be sure to enjoy her famous peanutbutter cookies and mince meat pies. Every holiday or birthday you could expect a meticulously crafted greeting card. Once the cards were complete and the cookies were baked, you could find her relaxing with the daily crossword puzzle, a good book, or an extremely large and equally difficult jigsaw puzzle. Depending on the season her evenings and weekends would be spent cheering on her beloved Kansas Jayhawks or Cleveland Browns. As busy as she kept herself, she was never too busy to pick up the phone for a quick hello.

She is survived by her daughter Sarah (Peter), sons, Andrew (Sara) and Jonathon (Grace), two granddaughters, Adrienne and Esme, her sister Suzi (Tim) and brother Derek, as well as many friends she considered family scattered all over the world but in particular her Westborough family, Dave, Jan, Kevin, and Eva.

She is preceded in death by her father William and mother Muriel who gave the best advice: it doesn’t cost anything to be kind, a motto she lived by every day.

In lieu of flowers, the family asks for donations to be made to one of her favorite places, the local library. Monetary donations can be made in her name to the Westborough Public Library or a physical donation of books and puzzles are always appreciated to your own local library.  

Checks may also be mailed to: Westborough Public Library, 1500 Union Street, Suite 101, Memorial: Pam Riley, Westborough, MA 01581.

A memorial service will be announced at a later date.