Jane Shaw "Viall" Foster

1923 - 2019

Jane Shaw (Viall) Foster, who with her husband William co-owned the Rhode Island (now East Greenwich) Pendulum weekly newspaper in East Greenwich, Rhode Island, from 1964 to 1984, died Sept. 6, 2019, at a retirement home in Yelm, Washington. She was 96.
During more than 30 years in Rhode Island, she was an active member of the First Baptist Church in East Greenwich, where she sang in the choir and served a term as the church's first woman president. She was the East Greenwich volunteer coordinator for Meals on Wheels of Rhode Island for 20 years.
A talented vocalist, she sang for eight years with the Choralettes, a professional trio that entertained throughout New England. She also performed as a soloist and as a cast member for the Savoyards, a Rhode Island choral group specializing in Gilbert & Sullivan operettas.
Before relocating to Rhode Island in 1959, she lived in Framingham, Massachusetts. She was born there on May 18, 1923, one of five children of Sumner W. Viall Sr. and Tamer England (Shaw) Viall.
In retirement, Jane and Bill Foster lived in Bradenton, Florida, for 20 years. After Bill Foster died in 2012, Jane moved to Yelm, Washington, in 2013. She is survived by her five children and their spouses: Anne Foster (John Levesque) of Seattle, Washington; Mark Foster (Michele) of Cranston, Rhode Island; John "J.W." Foster (Nicki) of Yelm, Washington; David Parker Foster (Julia Sokoloff) of Olympia, Washington, and Beth McCormick (Paul) of Higganum, Connecticut; 10 grandchildren and three great-grandchildren.
First Baptist Church, 30 Peirce St., East Greenwich, will host a memorial service at 11 a.m. Saturday, Nov. 2. Gifts to the church (firstbaptistri.org) or Meals on Wheels of Rhode Island in her name are welcomed. Or, you could subscribe to your local newspaper.