Colleen Plantinga, Longtime Resident of Westport

Colleen Plantinga, 92, died at her home in Westport on February 7th. She was the wife of the late John E. Plantinga.

Born in Grafton, West Virginia in 1923 to the late Walter and Virginia Ball, she had been a Westport resident since 1962.

A devoted wife and mother, she was raised in New Martinsville, West Virginia, where she grew up swimming in the Ohio River, playing the organ at her church and graduating valedictorian of her high school. She was awarded a degree in English Literature from Vassar College in 1945.

After a brief stint as a flight attendant for Eastern Airlines, she worked at Lord & Taylor in New York City as a fabric buyer. She was a voracious reader, avid pastelist, accomplished cook and passionate gardener. For almost two decades, she helped maintain the garden at the Saugatuck Congregational Church. She was also a longtime member of the Westport Garden Club. With her gentle spirit, playful wink and contagious laugh, she was adored by everyone who knew her.

Her husband John and sister Betty predeceased her. She is survived by her son John Gilbert Plantinga of Rosendale, NY; her daughter and son-in-law, Priscilla “Prill” (Boyle) and Michael (Boyle) of Westport; grandchildren: Gabriel Bach, Everett Boyle, Kate and Marcie Plantinga; great-children: Lydia and Charlotte Bach; and several step-grandchildren, step-great-grandchildren, nieces and nephews. She will be greatly missed by all.

Friends and well-wishers are invited to attend a memorial service on Saturday, February 27th at 11 am at the Saugatuck Congregational Church, 245 Post Road East, Westport. In lieu of flowers, memorial donations are invited for the Saugatuck Church Memorial Garden. Condolences for the Plantinga family may be left at http://www.hardingfuneral.com.