Harriet Valerie Maynard Graves, Overfalls volunteer

Harriet Valerie Maynard Graves, 87, of Lewes passed away peacefully, and surrounded by family Tuesday, April 6, 2021, at Beebe Healthcare in Lewes.  She was born June 28, 1933, in Richmond, Calif., daughter of the late Robert Horace and Valerie (Porai Koshitz) Maynard.

Harriet grew up in Fredericksburg, Va., and rose to valedictorian of her high school class of 1950.  She received a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in 1954.  Harriet was a social worker, and ultimately superintendent of Fredericksburg Department of Public Welfare.  She retired in 1978 to a family homestead in Narragansett, R.I., where she was a passionate gardener, dog-lover, and worked in the Special Education Department at the Narragansett Elementary School.

Harriet retired a final time, and settled in Lewes in 2000.  She was one of the early volunteers on the Lightship Overfalls, and was known to many because of her daily walks around town with her dachshunds, Wilson, and then, Katie.  She loved to read and cross-stitch, and she loved her friends and neighbors in Lewes.  Harriet was a beloved mother, grandmother, and a strong and independent woman.  Her huge smile, deep laugh, sense of loyalty and honest opinion will be always missed.

Harriet is survived by her three children: Cynthia Graves Murphy (Kevin) of Huntington Station, N.Y., Steven Graves (Deborah) of Midlothian, Va., and Michael Graves (Kimberly) of Woodbridge, Va.; and her six grandchildren:  Justin Murphy (Paige), Samuel Murphy (Emily), Sarah Murphy, Katherine Graves Jezierski (Matthew), Thomas Graves, and Matthew Graves.

Memorial services will be private. Arrangements have been entrusted to Parsell Funeral Homes and Crematorium, Atkins-Lodge Chapel, Lewes.

Those who wish are asked to contribute in Harriet’s memory to the Overfalls Foundation at www.overfalls.org or Overfalls Foundation, PO Box 413, Lewes, DE 19958.

Please visit Harriet's Life Memorial Webpage and sign her virtual guest book at www.parsellfuneralhomes.com.