Olga Viola Gervais

YARMOUTH – Olga Viola Gervais, known to many of us as “Grammy” 106 – yes, 106 years old! when she passed away peacefully on April 1, 2017. She was born in Sawyerville Quebec as the third child of Fredrick and Violet Wilder. The Wilder Family subsequently moved to Hancock NH where she lived until her marriage.

Viola was the last surviving of the nine Wilder children. She was born only a few months after Haley’s Comet splashed through the skies in 1910. She was born into an era where horses dominated the roads even though the Model T was two years old and the Wright Brothers had already taken their first successful flights. Think about this: Grammy could walk and talk before the outbreak of World War 1, the War to End All Wars. She lived to see the birth of TV, the use of the first nuclear weapon, saw a man walk on the moon, the end of the Cold War and the fall of the Berlin Wall! Her life spanned the most extraordinary discoveries and rapid rate of change that humanity has ever experienced.,

Grammy was an amazing woman with an endless amount of energy and love for her family. Summers spent at the lake, illegal fireworks on the 4th of July, homemade donuts (to which we have never had an equal), sour cream cookies the size of a child’s face, millions of freeze pops, a card on every holiday with money inside, the many Christmas Eve’s she would run out to “Beans” to get “one more thing” in her giant white Cadillac that she drove like a tank with purpose. Speaking of driving –that’s probably the only time that she ever sat still for more than 60 seconds. Her energy was dubbed “turbo-mode” and should be blamed for many of the shenanigans shared within this family. And she was consistently active in community affairs. We have so many memories that will live on, in our hearts and minds and the very fabric of our souls for a lifetime or longer.

Viola is survived by her two children, Edward Gervais and wife Joyce of North Yarmouth, ME and Pamela Tunis of Camarillo, CA, six grandchildren and eight great-grandchildren. She spent the last few years of her life lovingly cared for by the wonderful staff at BaySquare in Yarmouth – the family is very grateful for this help.

Visiting hours are scheduled from 11a-12p on Saturday, April 8th at Lindquist Funeral Home, 1 Mayberry Lane, Yarmouth ME with a service immediately following. Burial will be later this spring.

Arrangements under the direction of Lindquist Funeral Home, Yarmouth, ME.