Name: Joseph Gawler's Sons, LLC
Address: Washington, DC

Thinking of my dear friend Elaine on the anniversary of her passing. I wish you were here to celebrate Christmas with. 


Elaine was a charter member of our local Red Hat Society chapter "The Monumental Ladies of Washington, DC."
We miss the sparkle and joy she added to our activities. Her affinity for dressing up in flamboyant Red Hat Society regalia added to the fun of participating in outings and events with her.
Her willingness to help people, her life stories and her cheerful demeanor are missed by her neighbors and friends.
 

Posting a VERY FUN memory of Cousin Elaine!  As many of you know,   Elaine had a PASSION for all thing FLAMINGO~~~This is a LAP Quilt plus two throw pillows I has so much FUN making for Dear Elaine~~~Just sharing this photo of Elaine when she opened this surprise Christmas gift!  What always amazed me is, I am a FLORIDA gal, where there are so many Flamingos, especially in South Florida, and Elaine was from upper California where I don't think there are any or at least very few!  Memories o Elaine!!!

The correct address for Elaine's parish is
St. Augustine's Episcopal Church
555 Water Street, SW
Washington, DC 20024
www.staugustinesdc.org

FYI...the St. Augustine's address listed is for the RC church on V Street. St. Augustine's Episcopal Church, Elaine's parish, is located at 555 Water Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024. Website:
staugustinesdc.org

I worked with Elaine at the Union Labor Life Insurance Company for all the 20 yrs she was their. She was the head of the company's  PR dept.  She was always so nice and kind. I remember all the pictures she would take and have them in our ULLICO company newspaper.
She cover just about every event from department baby showers to the company's union events or celebrations. When she left we keep in contact for a while, I knew she was doing things she like, working at Museums and the like.
I wished I would have contacted her more over the last 3 years.  Elaine you were and still are one of the most wonderful person I have every meet. I will miss you 


Elaine and I became friends through our involvement in the DC chapter of the Association for Women in Communications (AWCDC). She was always brimming with ideas about events and other ways the chapter could connect with the DC communications community. I remember her volunteering every summer at the Smithsonian Folk Life Festival on the Mall. And I know how much she enjoyed visiting her family in California. We also shared a mutual love of the Episcopal Church (she at St. Augustine's and I at Epiphany). I am sorry to learn of her death and extend my heartfelt sympathy to her family. I will miss her.

I barely knew Elaine as I met her several years ago through a mutual friend, but her warmth, kindness and exuberance left a lasting  impression and memory with me. May she rest in peace.

Unforgettable memories of a great trip to South Beach with a remarkable woman who was loved by so many and who gave relentlessly to others despite whatever difficulties she may have encountered.  May you find comfort in the legacy of her love and of those who loved her and by extension her entire family!!

Elaine and I were friends for over 20 years. She was a wonderful and thoughtful friend and I was lucky to have her in my life. I loved her compassion for helping others and her sense of social justice. She spent endless hours volunteering for her church, Waterfront Village and most recently helping to distribute lunches provided by local venues  to seniors and immune compromised folks at River Park. Elaine was also fun to party with. We both joined 2 Red Hat Society groups and loved putting on flamboyant red hats and boas and strutting out stuff around DC. She talked me into joining the California State Society and we enjoyed sipping California wine in local museums and  on the rooftops of DC. Knowing my concern over climate change, her most touching gesture was having trees planted in a national park in my sister's name when she passed away.  I will miss her and her community will miss her.

Elaine will be deeply missed by many.
She was such a giver and volunteered to help many causes.
She can not be replaced as her love and generosity is very rare

Dear Aunt Elaine,

I still can’t believe that you are gone. You were so much more than an aunt for my brother and me. You always showed a genuine interest in what was going on with our lives and what we were into at the time. You always put others ahead of yourself and had a generous and selfless spirit that I can only aspire to live by. I will always cherish the memories of the holidays we spent together and our final trip to Mexico. Although Covid prevented us from getting together in person, I loved our FaceTime chats and I know Evie loved seeing her Nana. I am so sad that you will not be able to watch her grow up but am glad she got to meet you and spend some quality time with you. I love you, Aunt Elaine. Rest In Peace.

I am so sad at the passing of Dear Aunt E,  the all-time best aunt to my sons, Pat and Ben Graves, and great aunt to Ella, Eddy and Evie Graves.  She was a frequent visitor to the Bay Area in California, especially visiting during the holidays when the whole family would go to Salinas, her childhood home, and Carmel, a favorite stop for shopping.  Elaine was the ultimate shopper; so thoughtful in every gift she picked out for the boys and their daughters.  I shared with others and was so proud of  her commitment to serving her community, especially working with Cesar  Chavez and the farm workers during the 1060's. I will miss Elaine's adventuresome spirit and kind soul.  May She  Rest in Peace.  


My dear friend Elaine, you were a bright light in my life and brought so much fun and happiness to me. I will never forget the efforts we shared creating and building Waterfront Village - another example of your selflessness and civic spirit.  One of my greatest hopes in getting through the pandemic was finally celebrating your birthday as well as Rod and Joyce's at the Arts Club after a recital. We waited too long. Missing you...

At River Park in Southwest DC, Elaine and I served on a three-person Ad Hoc Committee on Trusts whose efforts led to the amending of River Park's Bylaws to permit True-ownership of units.  A year before she died, Elaine wrote a front page account for our neighborhood newspaper on her family's connection to John Steinbeck:  https://thesouthwester.com/2020/12/18/op-ed-southwests-connection-to-john-steinbeck/.  Notwithstanding that Elaine was Episcopalian, rather than Jewish, she came to my apartment for Chanukah celebrations.  To me she will always be Elaine Flora Graves (z"l), with the z"l standing for the Hebrew words Zich'ronah Li'V'racha -- May her memory be a blessing.

We were sorry to learn of Elaine’s sudden passing on Christmas Day. For several years we spent the holidays together when she  would visit her brother, Glenn, and his family in  the Bay Area. She will be remembered fondly as a kind and loving woman who was a devoted Aunt to Ben and Patrick Graves and their families. Our condolences to her family and friends who loved her dearly. May she Rest In Peace.💕🙏🏻 
Kelly Cousins and family

So many wonderful memories of my dear cousin, Elaine! Elaine~LOVED her family more than I can properly express.  She was kind, caring, loving, fun, compassionate, and smart.  Her cards that would come in the mail were always chosen with such care.  Giving Elaine a catch up phone call was always a joy.  Her travels are legend plus the many photos she would share with us on Facebook!  So happy she had such a wonderful time visiting her nephews Ben and Pat!  And she took such delight with her relationship with her "Grand" family from both Ben and Pat!   And, of course her love of Flamingos!!!  Will miss Elaine more than words can express~

Thank you all for your kind words. Elaine is survived by her two nephews Ben and Pat Graves and her grand-nieces Eddy (3), Ella (4) and Evie (2.) All named with initials EG in honor of their “Nana” Elaine who showered them with unbounded love and (…as anyone who knew Elaine) copious fashionable gifts. I wanted to share this picture of the last family gathering in Feb. 2020. Elaine was an avid traveler and we often pushed her boundaries when she adventured with my family. She hiked to remote hot springs in Mexico (where I carried her and the kids across different exposed cliff sections.) Elaine took a few trips to visit us in Colorado where we hiked her to 11,000 ft to forage for medicinal plants and rafted the Colorado River during a spring flood. We miss her so much and regret not having even more adventures with Elaine. 

Dear Cousin Elaine - I'm so sad I will never be with you again. You were always a welcome surprise in your thoughtfulness. There are things part of my day-to-day that I probably never would have known or come across if you didn't bring them into my life. I always looked up to you for your accepting and loving outlook, your unique take on life, and your talented ability to put it all down on paper for everyone to read. The way you talked about and were so very proud of your nephews was incredibly heart-warming and an example of how to love someone to be their best.  I know you are with Glenn, your Mom and Dad and, all the family who have gone before. I look to the day when I open my eyes and there you'll be with all those who have gone before me...what a wonderful day that will be...together again.

As I once said,
I must talk to Ann, only 
Ann was gone, she'd died

As I am now saying, 
I must talk to Lynn only
Lynn is gone too.

I looked forward to meeting
Elaine for a museum visit then
THEN lunch at Cafe Mozart
but she's gone, Christmas Day.

It's the season of death and dying
In my 8th decade, others also in 
their 8th decade and some younger
have died and left this plane, 
but
not my heart.

Elaine and I met working at the Folk Festival in the Market place, gee 20 years ago.  I am so sorry to learn of her death, breaks my heart actually.

I cannot see flamingoes without thinking of Elaine. She had a zest for life that often inspired me. I feel privileged to have known her, and I will miss her. My sincerest condolences to her nephews and extended family. 

Margaret Patterson

I am so grateful that Elaine Graves was in my life. She was kind, caring, funny, warm--did I say kind?---generous, considerate, smart. Kind.  A word that must be emphasized when remembering Elaine. Her friends have story after story about how if they did a favor for Elaine she reciprocated by doing twice or three times as many for them.  We all knew of her love for Flamingos--she wore hats, masks, carried shopping bags covered with them. We also knew of her love for her nephews and their children. She shared photos and stories of them and she was often seen pushing her cart full of packages for them to the neighbourhood post office. She was passionate, joining Zoom after Zoom call to learn about issues, participated in Yoga classes and was first to come to the aid of others. 

Elaine was an excellent editor, with a keen eye to detail. She was also 
stylish with a keen eye for good quality. We were lucky to hear her family stories, how she grew up in Salinas, California and the stories of her father playing with John Steinbeck when they were boys

She loved her outings to Trader Joes and Whole Foods and her bags were always filled, often with more items for others than for herself. She was thrilled when Kilwins moved into the SW neighbourhood and she was able to get her favorite Carmel apples and chocolate. 

I can’t believe I am wriing about her in the past tense. I will miss our daily conversations, our adventures to Gatsbys across the street from the Washigton Nationals ball park to have lunch. I can’t believe I will never hear her knock on my door again or get her phone calls...making sure I heard the latest news or asking me if I need an apple because she had extras. That was Elaine. Always putting others before herself.

My life was blessed in so many ways when I met Elaine Graves. I will never forget her. And I will never be able to see a Flamingo again without thinking of her!


OBITUARY

Elaine Graves

2 June, 1944 – 25 December, 2021

Joseph Gawler’s Sons, LLC

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