Rita Marie Gregory

7/18/1930 - 1/9/2026

Lyme - It is with great sorrow that the family of Rita (Trotochaud) Gregory announces her passing Jan. 9, 2026, at the age of 95 at home. Rita was born July 18, 1930, in Lawrence, Mass.

Rita graduated from high school and entered the convent affiliated with Sacred Heart Church in Lawrence where she served faithfully for seven years. She left the convent prior to taking her final vows.

She met her future husband when they were participants in a wedding. Rita told her close friend "I'm going to marry that guy." She married William Gregory, the love of her life, May 11, 1957, and they celebrated their 68th wedding anniversary last May. They raised two sons in the Devil's Hopyard area and Old Lyme area.

She worked for the Lyme-Old Lyme High School as a financial assistant for the school lunch program and the Town of Old Lyme as an assistant to the tax collector for numerous years. Rita was an avid gardener and especially loved the rock gardens on her property adorned with perennials and animal statues. She loved bluebirds and fed them annually with mealworms she procured, waiting eagerly for each generation to fledge the nest.

Rita excelled in creative activities of painting, ceramics, and card making and held a regular bridge seat with her friends at the senior center.

Rita is survived by her husband William Gregory; her son William Gregory Jr.: her daughters-in-law, Jan and Michele Gregory; her grandchildren: Rachel (Austin) Wilson, Sawyer (Kasey) Gregory and Slater Gregory; and her great-grandchildren, Rowan Wilson and Ella Gregory. She was predeceased by her son Steven Gregory.

She will be buried in the Eight Mile River Cemetery in Lyme in a private ceremony. Special thanks to Rita's dedicated and hardworking caregivers including Mary, Ellen, Deb, Kellen, Celeste, and Belkys. Memorial donations may be made to Friends of Lymes' Senior Center.