J. Joel Woodey, a retired University of Maryland School of Law faculty member and Walters Art Museum volunteer, died of a stroke May 17 at the University of Maryland Medical Center.

The Timonium resident was 79.

Born in Baltimore, he was the son of John Frederick Woodey, a naval officer, and Dorothy Wheeler.

He was a 1954 graduate of City College and earned a degree at the Johns Hopkins University. He then obtained a degree at the Harvard University School of Law, where he was a member of Phi Beta Kappa.

He joined the downtown Baltimore law firm of Niles, Barton and Wilmer in the early 1960s and practiced for about a decade.

He then joined the faculty of the University of Maryland School of Law, where he taught civil practice and the history of law.

He retired in June 2001.

Mr. Woodey collected antiquities, including Greek and Roman coins. He was a Walters Art Museum volunteer. He was interested in history and visited sites in Mexico, Egypt and England. He also participated in West Virginia canoe races.

He won an honorable mention at the Maryland State Fair for a watercolor painting. He also silk-screened Christmas cards for many years. He built dollhouses for family members and friends. An animal fancier, he owned cocker spaniels.

A memorial service will be held at 11 a.m. today at the Timonium United Methodist Church, 2300 Pot Spring Road, where he was a member.

Survivors include his wife of 55 years, Barbara Alice Bell, a retired Baltimore County public schools system librarian; a son, Bruce Woodey of Linthicum; and a daughter, Jennifer Davis of Gaithersburg.

—? Jacques Kelly