John T. Chirgwin, 83, of Edgartown, died at his home on Saturday, May 25, 2019. He was born on April 22, 1936, in Los Angeles, Calif., to Lucille (Hoyt) and Frederick Chirgwin.
John is survived by his daughter, Melissa H. Thorkilsen, of New Canaan, Conn.
Services will be held at a later date, and a full obituary will appear at that time.
For online guestbook and directions, please visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post John T. Chirgwin appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Hilary G. Walton (“Ri”), 47, died unexpectedly on May 8, 2019.
Hilary was born on June 3, 1971, in Boston, to Natalie (Melhorn) Kelloway of Wolfeboro, N.H., and the late Russell R. Walton of Chilmark.
Hilary graduated from Brewster Academy in Wolfeboro in 1988, received a bachelor of science degree in biokinesiology in 1993 from Gordon College in Wenham, and a master’s degree in exercise physiology from California State University, Los Angeles, in 2012.
Hilary loved teaching, and was a dedicated personal trainer with several certifications, including ones from the American College of Sports Medicine, the National Strength and Conditioning Association, and the American Council on Exercise. She also held several martial arts degrees, and was a Society of American Fight Directors–trained fight and stunt instructor.
From 2003 to 2009, Hilary and her husband, Dennis, developed and supervised the curriculum for the Southern California vocational schools, and traveled to Turkey to teach doctors, physical therapists, and personal trainers at the prestigious Hillside Sport University in Istanbul.
From 2006 to 2011, Hilary taught multiple science classes at Eagle Rock High School in Los Angeles. During this time, she developed the school’s first-ever forensic science program, which uses CSI techniques. She and Dennis worked with Eagle Rock Stage, teaching stunt training. Hilary also formed the Student Emergency Response Team, to teach students to prepare for and respond to school and community emergencies.
From 2012 to 2017, Hilary was a lecturer and research assistant at California State University, Los Angeles.
Recently Hilary was working with Cindy Patten, Blacks Paper Store, opening and managing Paper, Pen, and Palette, a creative boutique on South Main Street, Wolfeboro.
Hilary leaves her husband of 14 years, Dennis M. McLaughlin, of Glendale, Calif., her mother, Natalie M. Kelloway of Wolfeboro, aunt Carla M. Zwahlen of Mont Vernon, N.H., uncle and aunt Keith and Donna Kelloway of Tuftonboro, N.H., and cousins Stefan Zwahlen of Boseman, Mont., Jurg Zwahlen of Mont Vernon, his wife Lourinda, and their six children. She will also be missed by her many other cousins, including Peter and Denise Batchelder of Wolfeboro, as well as her many friends.
A memorial service is being planned at a future date at First Christian Church in Wolfeboro.
The post Hilary G. Walton McLaughlin appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Yvette E. (Arsenault) Canha, 85, of Vineyard Haven, died on May 15, 2019, at her home. She was the wife of the late Antone J. Canha. Yvette was born in Oak Bluffs on Feb. 25, 1934, to Wilfred and Mary (Fauburt) Arsenault.
Yvette is survived by her sons, Terry A. Canha and Jeffrey Canha, and her daughter, Laurene Canha. She also leaves behind her grandchildren and great-grandchildren.
Services will be held at a later date, to be announced.
In lieu of flowers, donations can be made in Yvette’s name to Elder Services of Cape Cod and the Islands, escci.org, or to Cape Cod Healthcare Foundation for VNA of Cape Cod, P.O. Box 370, Hyannis, MA 02601, givetocapecodhealth.org.
For online guestbook and directions, please visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post Yvette E. Canha appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Chip Anthony Leonardi of Chilmark passed away on May 13, 2019, in his home, surrounded by his family. He was 70 years old.
He leaves behind three children, Josh Kochin and wife Heather of West Tisbury, Alex Leonardi and wife Amelia of Conway, and Gina Solon and husband Davis of West Tisbury; his former wife, Michele Leonardi, also of Chilmark; his very best friend Robert Iwaskiewicz and wife Michele Bessett; and six grandchildren whom he adored, Simone, Beckett, Isla, Anthony, Levi, and Enzo.
A celebration of his life will be announced at a later date.
Donations can be made to Hospice of Martha’s Vineyard, P.O. Box 1748, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568.
The post Chip Anthony Leonardi appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
William J. Dias Jr. (“Billy”), 77, of Vineyard Haven, died on Sunday, May 26, 2019.
A funeral Mass will be held on Saturday, June 8, at 11 am at St. Augustine’s in Vineyard Haven. Burial will follow at Oak Grove Cemetery in Vineyard Haven.
A full obituary will be updated in a future edition of this paper.
For online guestbook and directions, please visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post William J. Dias Jr. appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Joyce Marie Freeman died on May 16 at Massachusetts General Hospital. She was 72. Joyce was born on May 2 1947 in Bridgeport Conn. her parents Gerald and Helen Bouffard soon moved to Sharon Ma. Where she grew up. She graduated from Sharon High School and Aquinas College in Milton. She met her future husband Leslie Freeman while they both worked at the Veterans Administration Hospital in Jamaica Plain.
The post Joyce Marie Freeman appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Eugene O. Defelice, 98, of Oak Bluffs and Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., died on May 31, 2019, at his home in Florida. He was the husband of Constance V. Defelice.
Visiting hours in the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road, Oak Bluffs will be held on Thursday, June 6, from 5 to 7 pm. Gene’s funeral Mass will be celebrated on Friday, June 7, in St. Augustine’s Church, Franklin Street, Vineyard Haven, at 11 am, with burial following in the Oak Grove Cemetery, State Road, Vineyard Haven. A Masonic funeral service will be performed at the graveside, with military honors provided by the veterans of Martha’s Vineyard.
Donations in his memory may be made to the American Legion, P.O. Box 257, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568. A complete obituary will appear in another edition of this paper. Visit ccgfuneralhome.com for online guestbook and information.
The post Eugene O. Defelice appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Kathleen S. (Selover) Stevenson, 83, died unexpectedly on Tuesday, June 4, 2019, at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. She was married to Samuel H. Stevenson of West Tisbury.
Her memorial service is pending, and a full obituary will appear in another edition of this paper.
Donations in her memory may be made to St. Andrew’s Episcopal Church, P.O. Box 1287, Edgartown, MA 02539, or to Polly Hill Arboretum, P.O. Box, 561, West Tisbury, MA 02575, or to the Visiting Nurse Association (check payable to Cape Cod Healthcare Foundation), P.O. Box 370, Hyannis, MA 02601.
Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road, Oak Bluffs. Visit ccgfuneralhome.com for online guestbook and information.
The post Kathleen S. Stevenson appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Barbara Mae Schoeneberg, age 88, a longtime summer resident of Edgartown, died on Wednesday, May 29, 2019, from natural causes.
Barbara was born on March 31, 1931, in Long Branch, N.J., to Fredrick and Gladys (Grant) Schoeneberg. Barbara attended some grade school years in Edgartown before her family moved to Barnegat, N.J., where she graduated from high school and enlisted in the Air Force as a first class airman at Sampson Air Force Base in New York. After her honorable discharge, she moved to California and worked for Chevron Oil until her retirement in 1979. She then returned to live with her parents and help care for her ill father. In 1980, Barbara and her mother Gladys purchased land in Edgartown and built a summer home. Each year they would spend their summers on the Island and winters in Laughlin, Nev.
Barbara was predeceased by her parents, and by her brother, Fred Schoeneberg Jr. She was also predeceased by many Island uncles and aunts: Ralph Grant, Cecil Grant, Kenneth Grant, Mansfield Grant, and Ruth (Grant) Duncan, all Island residents. She had many fond memories of her grandparents Lyman and Achsalt (Perry) Grant. Barbara is survived by many cousins and second cousins. Our memories of Barbara include her wonderful sense of humor, quick wit, and love of sunny days.
A visitation will be held from 10 to 11 am on Tuesday, June 11, at Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road in Oak Bluffs, followed by burial in the New Westside Cemetery, Robinson Road in Edgartown at 11:30 am, with military honors provided by the veterans of Martha’s Vineyard.
The post Barbara Mae Schoeneberg appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Steven E. Ruley, 64, of Oak Bluffs died on June 4, 2019.
Steven is survived by his former wife, Jayne Ruley of Port Charlotte, Fla., his son Ryan P. Ruley and his wife Christine of Oak Bluffs, and his daughter Shelly Mayhew and her husband Daniel of West Tisbury. Services will be private and a full obituary will appear at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Steven’s name can be made to the Visiting Nurse Association, check payable to Cape Cod Healthcare Foundation, and mailed to P.O. Box 370, Hyannis, MA 02601, or to the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass & Bluefish Derby, P.O. Box 2101, Edgartown, MA 02557.
For online guestbook and more information, visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post Steven E. Ruley appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Steven E. Ruley, 64, of Oak Bluffs, died on June 4, 2019.
Steven is survived by his former wife, Jayne Ruley of Port Charlotte, Fla., his son Ryan P. Ruley, and his wife Christine of Oak Bluffs, and by his daughter Shelly Mayhew and her husband Daniel of West Tisbury.
Services will be private, and a full obituary will appear at a later date.
In lieu of flowers, donations in Steven’s name can be made to the Visiting Nurse Association (check payable to Cape Cod Healthcare Foundation), P.O. Box 370, Hyannis, MA 02601, or to the Martha’s Vineyard Striped Bass and Bluefish Derby, P.O. Box 2101, Edgartown, MA 02557 (mvderby.com).
Arrangements are under the care of Chapman, Cole, and Gleason Funeral Home, Oak Bluffs.
For online guestbook and more information, please visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post Steven E. Ruley appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Graveside services for John Joseph Klingensmith Sr., 73, who died August 3, 2018, will be held on Saturday, June 22, at 10 am in the New Westside Cemetery, Robinson Road, Edgartown, officiated by the Rev. Michael Nagle, with military honors provided by the veterans of Martha’s Vineyard.
He was predeceased by his wife Rita (Viggiano) Klingensmith, and is survived by his two sons, Mark Klingensmith and John Klingensmith Jr. Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road, Oak Bluffs. Visit ccgfuneralhome.com for online guestbook and information.
The post Services for John Joseph Klingensmith Sr. appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
John Thomas Chirgwin died unexpectedly, but peacefully, in his home on his beloved Martha’s Vineyard on the morning of Saturday, May 25, 2019.
He had so many things he was looking forward to this summer. The day he died, he was planning on attending the reopening and the traditional start to the Edgartown Yacht Club season commissioning, where he had been a member since 1965. He was looking forward to attending his 60th Cornell School of Hotel Administration Alumni Reunion in early June, and seeing friends from his fraternity, Theta Delta Chi. His fall plans included a cruise with his brother Jim and his wife Margaret, whom he will be missed by, as well as his nephew Andrew and his niece Jane.
The Golden Door, the unusual retail business he created in Edgartown (and briefly on Nantucket) from 1965 to 2009 (at its many locations from Dock Street to North Summer Street) was filled with a fascinating selection of objects collected over the years, from the highly sought-after Jim Thompson Thai Silk bikinis in the ’60s and ’70s to the more extensive recent collection of African tribal art. The store was ably assisted over the years by a fabulous staff of what for many summers came to be known as the “Golden Girls,” among them Sherri, Tuna, Lucy, Mimi, Peggy, Cynthia, Susan, Debbie, Jennifer, Robin, Susie, Marjorie, Laura, Thea, and many more.
Sadly, his dear friends on the Vineyard will now also be deprived of hearing the latest tales of his travels and art acquisitions from the far corners of Asia and Africa, not to mention missing the extraordinary yarns he weaved, from his meeting heavyweight champion Rocky Marciano in the nightclubs of Fidel Castro’s Cuba, the wild festivities of many a time spent at Carnival in Rio with his friend Jeff, to the joy of the idyllic retreats he indulged in on the beaches of Bali. Many of his Vineyard friends could tell tales from the times they visited him abroad, enjoying activities like boating on the Khlongs of Bangkok, trekking through the temples of Cambodia, or dancing the night away at the clubs in Hong Kong. His debonair presence at every prominent Vineyard summer party, decked out always in a different colorful ensemble, or a natty double-breasted blue blazer, will also be missed.
Across the ocean in Bangkok, a place that had been a second home for many years, a fraternity of brothers known fondly as the “Bachelors of Bangkok” (John, Niphon, Davis, Shrimp, Ed, Kurt) and friends at Bangkok Rotary who shared many an adventure, among other things, will hold true to absconding from recanting those stories inadmissible to the general public. He will be most sorely missed by friends across the U.S., especially John Williams, who saved his life over two years ago after a heart attack, which spurred his quest to increase his travel schedule to ensure there was not a country, town, or adventure to be missed.
He came from three generations of Martha’s Vineyard innkeepers on his paternal side, starting with great-grandfather and -grandmother Thomas and Anne Cleveland Chirgwin (owners of the former Edgartown Inn and the Colonial Inn), grandparents Thomas and Lisa Shute Chirgwin (also at the Colonial Inn), and lastly his beloved parents Fred and Lucille Hoyt Chirgwin, owners of the former Daggett House. This legacy will be carried on by his daughter Melissa Chirgwin Thorkilsen, her husband Eric and their sons, Christopher and Nicholas, and Eric’s daughter Erin, as they will continue to keep the Lightkeepers Inn running, with the strong hand and huge heart of Heidi Raihofer and her husband Joe, who have been assisting John for 30 years in this and most aspects of his singular and varied existence. His was a bucket-list life filled with exotic places, wild escapades, friendships across the world, epicurean delights, and curiosity satiated. We are all richer for having known him.
A celebration of life will take place on August 23 at 1 pm at the Federated Church in Edgartown. All are welcome.
For online guestbook and directions, please visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post John Thomas Chirgwin appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Judith Phillips Neeld, 90, a longtime resident of Martha’s Vineyard, died on April 18, 2019, at her home in Vineyard Haven.
Judith was born in Norwood to Carleton Warburton Phillips and Edith Wilson Phillips on August 24, 1928. She graduated from Woodrow Wilson High School, and attended Denison University in Granville, Ohio, where she met her husband of 53 years, Richard Hoagland Neeld. They married on Sept. 11, 1948, and started their lives together, settling into Madison, N.J., where they would raise their family. She worked at Drew University for 10 years as communications coordinator, then assistant director of public affairs until 1972, when she left to pursue her career as a writer and poet. In 1974, she launched Stone Country: A Magazine of Poetry, Reviews, and Graphics, which she edited and published for the next 20 years. Devoted to her own writing, Judith enjoyed wide recognition, and in 1984 received the Emily Dickinson Award from the Poetry Society of America for her poem “Her Topography.” She also saw six books of her poetry published, including a most recent anthology of her life’s work, compiled by her Island poetry group, the Cleaveland House Poets.
She and her husband moved to the Vineyard in 1982, summering in Menemsha and wintering in Vineyard Haven. Although an avid traveler, she always considered the Vineyard home. Judith’s other interests included birding, cooking, leading wildflower walks, and watching tennis or the Boston Red Sox.
Judith was preceded in death by her husband, Richard Hoagland Neeld, and her son, Gordon Phillips Neeld. She is survived by her daughter, Nancy Neeld Vander Veen and husband Mark of Saint Augustine, Fla., daughter-in-law Lisa Pagano Neeld of Belle Mead, N.J., and three grandchildren, Sara Michalec and her husband Mark, Scott Vander Veen and his fiancée Sabina Camponogara, and Harrison Neeld.
A memorial service, with a reception to follow, will be held at 4 pm on Monday, June 24, at Featherstone Center for the Arts in Oak Bluffs, preceded by a private graveside service for family at Abel’s Hill Cemetery. Arrangements are being handled by Chapman, Cole & Gleason Funeral Home.
In lieu of flowers, donations may be made in Judith’s name to the Sheriff’s Meadow Foundation, P.O. Box 1088, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, to the Unitarian Universalist Church of Martha’s Vineyard, 238 Main St., Vineyard Haven, MA 02568, or to the charity of your choice.
For online guestbook and directions, please visit ccgfuneralhome.com.
The post Judith Phillips Neeld appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Eric Thorsin Farrish, known as Thor, passed away at home on June 2 after a lengthy illness. He was 59 years old.
He leaves behind his mother Gail Farrish of Edgartown and her friend of many years, Warren Morse. Thor was predeceased by his father, Grover Farrish. He also leaves behind two sisters, Kristin Shaw and her husband Tiger, of Park City, Utah, and Heidi Laub and her husband George, of New Canaan, Conn. Of great love and enjoyment to Thor were his seven nieces and nephews, Gunnar, Kara and Eva Shaw and Nick, Kristin, Andrew and Elizabeth Laub. They fondly referred to Thor as “Uncle 4,” a nickname that Thor gave himself during their youth.
Thor’s quick wit and amazing wisdom were always present during his unique and challenging life. He served in the Air Force for 10 years, based in South Korea, translating documents for the NSA. He returned to the United States and applied his passion for computer programming and technology in several positions, including teaching graduate students at Boston University and working as a freelance consultant in IT.
Thor’s love of fishing and Martha’s Vineyard drew him to settle on the Island in the late 1990’s. He managed to work remotely and in flexible ways giving himself the ability to pursue his interests in fishing, piloting his Cessna 182, riding his Harley with a sidecar, and spending time with family and friends around gourmet meals and exotic drinks. Many were lucky enough to avoid his fiery hot crayfish parties yet enjoyed his blackened swordfish and famous pig roasts. Thor could create out of this world delicious culinary experiences.
As his nieces and nephews grew, Uncle 4 would perform as a magician at their birthday parties, teach them astronomy, take them on fishing adventures, and shower them with the most unusual and fantastic gifts. Incomparable to other uncles, Thor was the smartest, most fun and larger than life character with a deep belly laugh. He loved them all unconditionally.
Thor touched many people in a myriad of ways. Most saw the good in Thor and valued his generosity, and sharing of knowledge and intelligence. Thor truly loved the Edgartown Yacht Club, volunteering during regattas, helping the club with computer systems, serving on the race committee as well as fishing local waters. Spending the end of the day at Bar One or the String Piece gave Thor great pleasure. He will be remembered as a salty, colorful and eccentric character with a heart of gold.
A celebration of his life will be planned for later this summer.
The post Eric Thorsin Farrish appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Family and friends are gathering at the Martha’s Vineyard Hebrew Center, 130 Center St., Vineyard Haven, this Sunday, June 23rd, at 1 pm to celebrate the life of beloved husband Paul Pimentel. The family thanks all who have so generously donated to Martha’s Vineyard Community Services in Paul’s memory. For more information and to read more about Paul’s life, visit www.paulpimentelmemorial.com.
The post Services for Paul Pimentel appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Doris A. Long, 84, of the Campgrounds in Oak Bluffs, died on Saturday, June 15, 2019, at home. She was predeceased by her husband, Gordon R. Long, and is survived by her children, Raymond B. Long and Donna Cummens.
A memorial service will be held at a later date, and a complete obituary will appear at that time. Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road, Oak Bluffs. Visit ccgfuneralhome.com for online guestbook and information.
The post Doris A. Long appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
James H. Brownlow, 85, of North Haven, Conn., and summer resident on Hines Point in Vineyard Haven, died on Sunday, June 16, 2019, at the Martha’s Vineyard Hospital. He was the husband of Allison (Dwyer) Brownlow.
Jim’s funeral service is pending, and a complete obituary will appear in another edition of this paper. Arrangements are under the care of the Chapman, Cole and Gleason Funeral Home, Edgartown Road, Oak Bluffs. Visit ccgfuneralhome.com for online guestbook and information.
The post James H. Brownlow appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
A funeral Mass for Jane W. Shelley, 93, who died April 22, 2019, will be held on Saturday, June 29, at 9:30 at Our Lady Star of the Sea Church, Oak Bluffs, celebrated by the Rev. Michael Nagle.
Jane was predeceased by her husband, Henry C. Shelley, and is survived by her four children, Henry Jr., Mary Elizabeth, Frank, and Mark, their spouses, and eight grandchildren. She is also survived by her sister, Elizabeth Deyo, of North Andover.
Contributions in her memory may be made to Martha’s Vineyard Community Services, 111 Edgartown Road, Vineyard Haven, MA 02568.
The post Services for Jane W. Shelley appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.
Kin Ping Lee died peacefully in her beloved Beacon Hill home on June 14, 2019, surrounded by her family. She was 92 years old.
Mrs. Lee was a longtime resident of West Tisbury, and for many years the proprietor of a popular women’s clothing store on Main Street in Edgartown, Kin Ping’s Boutique. She and her husband bought land in West Tisbury in 1965, after Kin Ping climbed up a tree, ascertaining that there was an ocean view. She later designed and built a home on the site, with a wall of windows facing the ocean.
She also bought an old captain’s house at 44 Main St. in Edgartown in the spring of 1974, at a bank auction. At the time, the playwright Garson Kanin used the top floor as his retreat for writing. She ran her business in this house for nearly three decades after that, and was a familiar face and friend to many on the Island. One of her earliest tenants was Gery Conover, who opened an antique store there before later buying the Charlotte Inn.
Mrs. Lee came to the U.S. from Shanghai in 1948, two days after her wedding, and died in Boston on 2019, after a vibrant life in which she was a witness to history and a fashion entrepreneur, having started a series of stylish boutiques bearing her name.
Mrs. Lee was born in Suzhou, the heart of silk industry in China. She was the daughter of a textile merchant, whose success led the family to relocate to a stately mansion in the French Concession of Shanghai. Mrs. Lee came of age in the thick of WWII, and one of her earlier memories was huddling under the family dining table while Japanese bombers attacked Shanghai in 1937 — a sound that would come back to her in 2013 when she stood a block from the Boston Marathon bombing on Boylston Street.
She had a privileged childhood, and recalls playing with I.M. Pei, one of her neighbors and a family friend. But she remembered seeing the bodies of people who had frozen to death after every cold night as she was driven to school. Seeing that kind of inequity instilled in her a lifelong passion for politics in China and the U.S. She canvassed door-to-door for Barack Obama while in her 80s, and kept his portrait and a framed newspaper front page from his 2008 election on her dining room wall.
While she was a teenager in Shanghai, her father arranged a marriage between her and the son of a wealthy shipping tycoon. But when she met Thomas H. Lee, an engineering student who she thought was smart and exciting, she broke off her engagement. She married Lee, and they came to the U.S. for a planned two years of education and training. He went on to develop the vacuum circuit breaker while working at General Electric, earn the Philip Sporn Professorship of Energy Processing at Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and become a pioneer in the development of modern management techniques.
Because of turmoil after the 1949 revolution in China, the couple decided to remain in the U.S. They raised their three sons in the U.S., William, an intellectual property lawyer at WilmerHale and the Senior Fellow of the Harvard Corporation; Thomas Jr., a physician at Brigham and Women’s Hospital and chief medical officer at Press Ganey); and Richard (professor of medicine at Brigham and Women’s Hospital, and professor of stem cell and regenerative biology at the Harvard Stem Cell Institute).
William, who is the first Asian American to be managing partner of a major law firm, said that his mother told the three brothers to never walk away when someone called them an ethnic slur. He added, “She was a force.”
In the 1960s, Mrs. Lee went to Philadelphia College of Art before accepting a job as a fashion illustrator, drawing women’s clothing ads for newspapers and magazines. Ultimately, her talents led her to start her own stores. She had an eye for promising young designers, and forged relationships before they were famous. Her stores were among the first to carry the work of designers such as Betsy Johnson, Norma Kamali, and Perry Ellis. She opened the first of her stores, Kin Ping’s Boutique, in Media, Pa., and then others in Westport, Conn., and at Faneuil Hall in Boston, as well as on the Island. Her Edgartown store was the go-to place for women to buy white dresses for Carly Simon’s legendary full-moon party. Her business was a major success. The earnings paid the tuition bills for her sons.
After her husband’s death in 2001, she closed her business, and devoted her time and energy to her family. She is survived by her three sons, her three daughters-in-law, Leslie Lee, Dr. Soheyla Gharib, and Dr. Susan Powers-Lee; her eight grandchildren, Christopher Lee, Catherine Lee, Margaret Lee, Dr. Jessica Lee, Dr. Kathleen Lee-Sarwar, Dr. Simin Lee, Sabrina Lee, and Ariana Lee; and five great-grandchildren, Belen, Thomas, and Morgan Lee, and Alexandra and Julia Smith. She loved walking Lambert’s Cove beach with her children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren, and gardening in her West Tisbury home. She believed that the best two things in the world were flowers and children. She enjoyed both at Lambert’s Cove.
The post Kin Ping Lee appeared first on The Martha's Vineyard Times.