Obituary of Grace Tilley

The family of Grace Tilley of Carbonear is deeply saddened to announce her passing away suddenly but peacefully and without pain at the Carbonear Hospital on January 20, 2022 in her 87th year. She was pre-deceased by her daughter, Sandra Tilley Hollett (2009), her sister, Ida Mullett (nee Richards) (2018), her husband, Roy Tilley (1969) and by parents George and Eliza Richards (nee Dawe) and parents-in-law, Rupert and Elizabeth Tilley (nee Somers). Leaving to mourn daughters Marion Tilley of Calgary, AB and Joy Tilley of St. John’s, son-in-law Kenneth Hollett of St. John’s, grandchildren Henry Hollett, Cole Sevigny, Amelia Hollett and Charlotte Sevigny, nieces Suzanne Mullett of St. John’s, Denise Mullett (Steve Bonnell) of Chicago and Cheryl Mullett (Stuart Ogilvie) of St. John’s, grandniece Violet Ogilvie and grandnephew Cameron Ogilvie both of St. John’s and grandnephews Evan and Isaak Bonnell of Chicago, special cousins, Barbara Patterson (nee Bright) of St. John’s and Edward Bright of Toronto and numerous friends and relatives and former Walmart colleagues. Susie Grace was born to George Richards, a seaman on Capt. Bob Bartlett’s schooner, and his wife Eliza in 1935 in Bareneed, Newfoundland. She attended St. Mark’s Anglican Church and went to St. Mark’s School, a one room school house. She recalled a childhood of close family and grade school friends: Effie, Pearl, Emmy, Verna and Myrtle. She told of berry-picking boil-ups and skating on the frozen potato patch and ponds. Grace was known for her school day poetry recitations and was still reciting into her senior years. In her late teens she lived and worked in Toronto, working at the Hershey Chocolate factory, living with her Aunt Alice Bright and close cousins, Edward, Barbara, and the late Betty Cooper and Faith Keates. She returned to Newfoundland and worked as a clerk at United Towns in St. John’s. She came home to Bareneed on the weekends where she met her husband, Roy Tilley, of Carbonear. They married in 1959 and started a family together on Bond Street but Roy died in 1969 and Grace carried on raising her three daughters with the help of her mother who lived with the family. She taught her daughters the love of reading and to persevere and work hard. She was proud of her daughters’ accomplishments. They went on to become a doctor, a lawyer and a software developer. Grace attended St. James’ Anglican Church, Carbonear and was active in the Anglican Church Women (ACW) and had many friends from the church. She worked in retail, retiring from Walmart where she remained close to many work colleagues. Grace loved reading and said recently that she wanted to spend her final years reading in her house on Bond Street that she lived in for 60 years. She also did sewing and most recently was making a quilt for the hospital gift shop where she volunteered. She loved baking and was known for her date crumbles. She was a collector of fancy dishes. Grace was proud of her house that she fixed up beautifully over the years. Grace was a proud grandmother of four grandchildren. She participated in their childcare and delighted in their growth and accomplishments. Three of her grandchildren are attending Memorial University in Political Science, the Sciences and the School of Music with the youngest in high school. Her grandchildren were most precious to her. Grace was a keen card player who loved attending community card games at the Anglican Church Hall, the Legion and the Knights of Columbus and played cards with many friends over the years especially with her lifelong friend, the late Elva Slade (nee Batten). Grace loved to travel both locally and internationally with her family. Grace saw difficult times in life but she was determined to carry on in spite of them. She set an example of courage and determination, a strong woman, fiercely independent, who lived life on her own terms. She will be greatly missed. A special thank-you to Grace’s friend, Glenis Pike who accompanied her to the hospital on the day she passed. Thanks to numerous friends who reached out to mom and made her feel less isolated, especially during the pandemic. Honouring Grace’s wishes, a private family funeral will take place later in the Spring/Summer of this year. If you would like to make a donation in memory of Grace, please consider St. James’ Anglican Church, Carbonear or the Port-de-Grave Peninsula Heritage Society.