Grace Gillespie's Obituary
Grace Gillespie died peacefully at ET York Hospice on April 26, 2018. Her husband of nearly 71 years and her son and daughter were at her side. Grace lived devoted to her family, her faith and the struggles of the less fortunate. In her twenties, she and her husband Paul served as missionaries in Central America. In her early thirties, she completed a college education that had been interrupted by motherhood and was graduated with a BA in Psychology from Mercer University. Throughout the career that followed, she held a number of administrative positions, among them Director of Volunteers for Miami Red Cross and, her favorite job, Care Co-ordinator at Miami’s Parkway Childrens Center. Grace had a searching intellect and was an avid reader whose favorite authors were Henry James, C.S. Lewis, and Anthony Trollope. When she retired, she volunteered as an adult literacy tutor. She was also a docent at Miami’s Fairchild Gardens and lovingly tended her home garden. She once told her son, “I want my obituary to say ‘She grew ferns.’” Grace was a talented seamstress and quilter, a beach lover and a gifted homemaker. She was a loving wife and mother and a delightful and generous grandmother whose legacy of love and service is cherished by her family. She is preceded in death by her mother Phoebe, sisters Elsie and Jean, brother Matt and grandson James. She is survived by her husband Paul, son Jonathan, daughter Donna Mitchell, granddaughters Emily Prabhakar and Merrill Montgomery and 3 great grandchildren.
A memorial service will be held at Grace Presbyterian Church at 4 pm Saturday, April 28, 2018.
What’s your fondest memory of Grace?
What’s a lesson you learned from Grace?
Share a story where Grace's kindness touched your heart.
Describe a day with Grace you’ll never forget.
How did Grace make you smile?