Phyllis E. Graichen

My mother Phyllis Graichen, lived to be 100 years old. Anyone who knew her would probably describe her as a quiet soft spoken lady. She grew up on a 15 acre farm in West Kingston. One of her favorite past times was going raccoon and deer hunting with her father. He sold the fur pelts to the fur trader to buy the seed for his garden. Another favorite past time was playing her violin. A neighborhood woman was a violinist and gave her lessons. She studied with her for eight years and became very proficient. She also had a sweet singing voice and would often be asked by the Richmond Grange and Queens River Baptist Church to perform. She attended the one teacher one room school house in West Kingston. It was rough going in the winter as transportation was a covered wagon with runners pulled by a horse. In the spring they had the mud to contend with. In the winter it was dark coming and going. She married at age twenty and 4 years later I arrived on the scene ten years later my sister Carla Ann joined us. She worked as a woolen mender in the Peace Dale Mill during World War II. She was very patriotic and always voted. She saw a lot of Presidents and wars come and go. When she was six years old she marched in an armistice parade for World War I. They marched most of the afternoon and she said she thought her little legs would drop off. We girls married and grandchildren came along. I married a service man and she became a “frequent flyer” visiting me – San Diego, Florida and Maryland. One of my fondest memories was when Carla and I took her on a trip to Free Port in the Bahamas. She loved those Rum Swizzles. She was honest, and never broke confidence. She was a great Mom and girlfriend. We shall miss her. Mom passed away Wednesday November 23, 2011 surrounded by a loving caring staff at South Kingstown Nursing and Rehabilitation in West Kingston. She leaves her loving daughters, Arlene Lindberg and her husband David and Carla Ann Cullen of Richmond; a brother Franklyn Cooke of Cranston; a sister Barbara Rice of West Kingston; three grandchildren and five great grandchildren. Her services will be private.