Virginia B. Howarth

Pawtucket – Virginia B. (Fontaine) Howarth, 88, passed away peacefully on Monday, January 16, 2023 in Providence. She was the beloved wife of the late Robert E. Howarth, Jr., (Ret. PPD). Born in Providence, she was an only child of the late Emile G. and Flora (Capaldi) Fontaine. Virginia grew up in Providence and graduated from Mount Pleasant High School. She married the love of her life, and was sadly widowed after only nineteen years of marriage. As fate would have it, Virginia was reunited with her late husband exactly fifty-one years to the date of his passing in 1972. Virginia independently raised their four loving children and worked multiple jobs to make ends meet as a young widow. She retired in 2000 from the Rhode Island Division of Statewide Planning after twenty-five years of employment. Virginia was a fan of the New England Patriots and an avid golfer who taught her grandchildren the sport, and even customized their clubs for optimal performance. She enjoyed volunteering with Little Sisters of the Poor at the Jeanne Jugan Residence, Pawtucket, and found much peace visiting Our Lady of La Salette Shrine in Attleboro. Virginia’s smile, presence and grace will be dearly missed by all the lives she has touched. She is survived by two daughters, Lorraine Thompson and her husband, Lawrence, and Lynn Matson and her late husband, Andrew; a son, Gary Howarth and his wife, Jeanne; five grandchildren, Sonja, Heather, Tommy, Erik and Haley; six great-grandchildren, Trissity, Natalie, Max, Davey, Kody and Kip, and many loving cousins. She was the mother of the late Robert E. Howarth and grandmother of the late Ryan Matson. Her funeral will be held on Saturday beginning with VISITATION at 11:00 a.m. in WILLIAM W. TRIPP Funeral Home, 1008 Newport Ave., Pawtucket, followed by a Mass of Christian Burial at 1:00 p.m. in St. Teresa Church, 358 Newport Ave., Pawtucket. Interment with her late husband and son at St. Ann Cemetery, Cranston, will be private. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts to Little Sisters of the Poor, C/O Jeanne Jugan Residence, 964 Main St., Pawtucket, RI 02860 would be appreciated. TRIPPFUNERALHOME.com

Virginia B. Howarth

July 30, 1934 - January 16, 2023