Linda Mae Grochowski (nee Viator) born in Gloucester, MA on September 13, 1940, and raised in Quincy, MA,  had a strong yet kind soul. In recent years she had lived with her daughter in Middleboro, MA. Linda passed peacefully on the morning of August 22nd surrounded by loved ones at Plymouth’s BID Hospital. She lived up to her name as she was beautiful and kind-hearted. She always thought of others and she never missed a birthday. Her thoughtfulness extended to donations worldwide and cards for every occasion for family and friends. She was always looking for reasons to build and give away gift baskets. 

Linda is predeceased by her parents Grace and William Viator, and her husband Stephen Grochowski. Linda is survived by her daughter Sherri Goodnow and her husband Dana of Middleboro, MA; son Christopher Grochowski and his life-partner Pamela Sullivan of Hilo, HI; her grandchildren Joshua Payne and his wife Leah of Plymouth, MA; Miranda Guidetti and her husband John of Plymouth, MA; Sasha Grochowski of Puna, HI, and Sara Grochowski who is following the family’s wanderlust and adventuring around the world; great-grandsons Maverick Guidetti and Ori Payne. She is also survived by her sister Priscilla Hatcher of IN; brother William Viator and partner Ann Marie Maguire of RI; brother Albert Viator and his wife, Lucinda of MA as well as cousins, nieces and a nephew; and many dear friends, particularly two life-long friends Barbara Alcione of MA and Pamela Newman of IN. We treasured her with all of our hearts, and we miss her dearly.

Linda savored music, spending time with family, and pretty things such as flowers, the ocean, the mountains of NH and Colorado, and her crackle glass collection. She was crafty, valued thriftiness, and used to have fun attending yard sales and flea markets much of her life. As a young woman she organized flea markets for her church parish. She appreciated and relished the opportunity to be the seasonal caretaker at the Moose Campground in North Conway NH where she, her husband, and children spent many summers.

Growing up Linda and her siblings helped with their father’s business, Hancock Electric Motor Repair. She had fond memories of “The Camp,” their Carver home and harmonizing in the car rides there with her dad. Linda, her siblings, and neighborhood friends picked fresh blueberries from their neighborhood. After they collected enough blueberries to make a pie for her Dad, the leftovers were sold and they took their earnings on a 6.5 mile bike ride all the way from Bunny’s Rd in Carver to Benny’s in downtown Plymouth. She enjoyed Carver so much that she eventually purchased a small cottage in the same neighborhood for her grandchildren to enjoy and later built a retirement home there. 

As a young adult Linda traveled to Boston where she worked for an insurance company. There she met her best friend Barbara. Eventually the two moved into the city where they shared an apartment, and later met their husbands. Always a working mother, from Quincy’s Woolworths food counter waitress to Administrative Assistant for the Director of Nurses at Faulkner Hospital Boston, Linda attended night school and earned an Associate’s Degree in Business from Quincy College. After traveling for several years, she worked at Econo Corp in Randolph before retiring. She was fond of the Native American culture and enjoyed playing her drum during her lunch breaks. She had excellent typing skills that began while assisting at her father’s business and extended to helping her grandchildren type school papers.

Ever the explorer, Linda began her adventures after high school as a senior class trip with Pamela Newman when they traveled to Florida. Pam became one of her dearest friends of over 70 years. She continued her adventures with her other cherished friend of over 60 years, Barbara Alcione to places like New Orleans, Washington DC, and England. Another time she and Stephen toured England and Wales, where they had a family reunion in London as both children were stationed overseas in the military (Sherri in Belgium and Chris in Germany). She took advantage of Sherri being in Belgium, and visited. They did some sight-seeing in Belgium, and also traveled to Garmisch-Partenkirchen, Germany. One of her last great escapades was a year-long cross-country trip with her husband through the United States, Canada, and Mexico traveling in their Ford pickup truck while towing a sixteen foot camper. She had also visited her son and his family twice in Hawaii. 

In her later years she especially enjoyed Scrabble, puzzles, game shows, an occasional car ride just to feel the sun on her face, along with visits from her great-grandson Maverick. She was incredibly proud of her children and grandchildren whom she had instilled hardwork and determination. Recently she had told Sherri how much she enjoyed watching the property transform, listening to the silly stories about the garden, blueberry & raspberry patches, chickens, ducks and turkeys, and how she never imagined she’d live on a mini farm.

Thank you to the kind and caring medical team and staff at the Beth Israel Deaconess Hospital of Plymouth. Special thanks to James in the ER; Dr. A, Nurses Emma, Nancy, Melody, Katrina, Mariah, Chris, Elizabeth and Dr. Danny who even took the time to ask about Linda’s life.

There will be a Memorial Service to celebrate Linda’s life with a reception and potluck dinner to follow held on September 14th, 2024 from 11AM - 2PM at Plymouth Rock Bible Church, 267 Carver Rd, Plymouth MA 02360. There will be cake in honor of what would have been Linda’s 84th birthday. As Linda cared deeply for many charities, please donate to one of your choosing in lieu of flowers. Here are her favorite charities;

Mercy Ships (mercyships.org), 

Christian Appalachian Project (christianapp.org)

International Fellowship of Christian and Jews (help.ifcj.org), 

St Bonaventure's Mission and School (stbonaventuremission.org), 

Help Heal Veterans (healvets.org), 

Wounded Warriors (support.woundedwarriorproject.org)

Mercy Home for Boys and Girls (donate.mercyhome.org),

 Boys Town (boystown.org),

Save the Children (savethechildren.org), 

Feed the Children (feedthechildren.org), 

Feeding America (give.feedingamerica.org), 

Water for People (waterforpeople.org), 

Native American Children’s Fund (nacfok.org), 

Native American Heritage Association (naha-inc.org),

National Wildlife Federation (nwf.org), 

The Nature Conservancy (preserve.nature.org), 

Arbor Day Foundation (arborday.org)

Boston Rescue Mission (brm.org)

Center for Victims of Torture (cvt.org)