Margaret "Iris" Nedwidek

Margaret Iris Nedwidek, a beloved matriarch, passed away on March 7, 2025. She was an exceptional mother, grandmother, and great-grandmother.

Iris was born and raised on a small farm in Holly Ridge, North Carolina. Her beauty, warmth, and spunk caught the attention of Captain Raymond Nedwidek, Marine Corp, stationed at Camp Lejuene, North Carolina. They married at the chapel on base and eventually moved to Raymond’s hometown, Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, where she became the mother of five children over seven years.

The move to Narragansett came in 1966 when the children were all under 12 years old. As the kids grew older, she took a job at South County Hospital as the Pharmacy Technician. Many of the friendships she and Raymond cherished were formed with URI faculty and coaches. And those friendships lasted a lifetime.

Iris leaves five children - David and his wife Katy Allen, Michael and his wife Cindy Nedwidek, Cynthia and her husband Steve Haslam, Trisha and her husband Jay Readyhough, and Linda and her husband Tommy Landy, grandchildren Chris, Allie, Lydia, Elizabeth, Kelsey, Lauren, Nicole, Eliza, Taylor, Lindsey, Andrew, Natalie, and Emma and her great-grandchildren James, Llewyn, Iris, Archie, Eleanor, Laurel, Nolan, and Oliver.

Mom never met a party she didn’t like. She was an excellent cook. She loved gardening - which was essential where she was raised and a key to happiness in later life. Iris found joy in her bridge club, her long walks on the beach, and working out at River Bend. But nothing compared to the joy her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren brought her.

Fiercely proud of her Carolina heritage, Iris was a rebel at heart. Friends and family are pretty sure that if she

had been born one hundred years earlier the South may have prevailed.

There will be Celebration of Life in the Peace Dale Congregational Church on Tuesday, March 11, 2025 at 11:00 AM, followed by a reception.

In lieu of flowers, donations can be made to the Peace Dale Congregational Church or HopeHealth Hospice of Rhode Island.