Grace Gunnip

Grace was born in Providence, daughter of Henry and Mary (McCorry) Waldron was one of five siblings; Henry, Kay, Anne, and Mary.  She was raised in Providence and Cranston and graduated from St. Patrick’s High School in Providence. As a young adult, she entered the Religious Sisters of Mercy in Cumberland to be a nun. While she left the novitiate, Grace never left the church. She was a dedicated Catholic her entire life. She met the challenge of paralysis from Guillain-Barré syndrome in her late 30s with grace and determination, relearned to walk and drive, and refused to be limited by any obstacles put before her.

Grace raised three children; Jenny, Jon, and Matthew as a single parent while working two jobs. During the day, she worked at Insight helping people struggling to adjust to life due to visual impairments.  At night, she cleaned office buildings.  At 41, she graduated with a degree in Human Development & Family Studies from the University of Rhode Island, earning a surprise special acknowledgment for her perseverance in pursuing her degree despite challenges. At 45, she started a 23-year career at DCYF as a social caseworker, initially supporting children and families impacted by abuse and neglect and later specializing in adoptions.

At 70 years old, life threw her another curve ball and again she didn’t strike out. Due to end-stage kidney disease and a heart attack, she underwent triple-bypass surgery and received a heart valve transplant. They gave her a 50 percent chance of leaving the hospital alive.  She not only survived, but lived eight more years independently, the last four years on dialysis. During those eight years, she enjoyed watching her children get married and seeing her six grandchildren grow: Aidan, Avery, Owen, Naomi, Kai, and Mateo. She’s at peace knowing all her children are married to spouses she loved deeply: Chris, Katie, and Rose. Her parenting philosophy, which her mother passed down was “roots and wings.”

Grace enjoyed traveling in her later years with her children to South Carolina, Florida, Ireland,  the Cayman Islands and Martinique. She has one more trip left with her family to the Aran Islands in Ireland to spread her ashes. Her Irish pride and heritage were incredibly important to her identity.    

Despite various health setbacks, Grace cherished her independence and worked tirelessly to live in her own house. Just weeks ago, an illness disrupted her fragile balance of health issues.  Like Frank Sinatra, she had a life philosophy that was “my way.” Surrounded by her children at the hospital, Grace told them it was a good run and that she was ready to go. She looked each of the children in the eye from the hospital bed and let them know she was proud of all of them.

Grace brought out the best in people. She was blessed with the kindness of so many people. She accumulated and maintained deep friendships throughout her life, and she was profoundly grateful for that.

Besides her children and grandchildren, Grace is survived by brother Henry Waldron, sister-in-law Katie Waldron, sister Kay Conroy, brother-in-law Joe Conroy, sister Anne Murphy, and sister Mary Plante. In lieu of flowers, donations in Grace's name may be made to Mount St. Rita Health Centre 15 Sumner Brown Road Cumberland, RI 02864 to honor of the work of the Sisters of Mercy.

Visitation will be held on Wednesday April 17th from 5:00-8:00pm in The Butterfield Chapel 500 Pontiac Avenue Cranston. A Mass of Christian Burial will be celebrated on Thursday April 18th at 10:00am in St. Gregory the Great Church 360 Cowesett Road Warwick. Burial will be in Ireland.