Nancy (Cuttle) Radford Fraser, a life-long resident of Old Greenwich passed away peacefully on May 9. She was 86 years old.
Nancy was predeceased by her parents, Jesse Russell Radford (Oct. 24, 1903-March 15, 1990) and Adelaide (Margaret) Cuttle Radford (July 20, 1903-Feb. 5, 1985); her sister Sally Greene Radford Love (Aug. 2, 1939-March 15, 2017); her youngest child, Megan Benedict Fraser (Oct. 12, 1967-Aug. 23, 1999); and her former husband, P. Benedict Fraser, Jr. (July 11, 1933-Feb. 27, 2003.)
She is survived by three children, seven grandchildren, and her life partner, Steve Becker. Her surviving descendants include daughter, Hilary Fraser, and her children, Milo Hang, Shelby Hang and Curtis Hang; son, John Fraser and his spouse Stacey Lavalle, and their children, Belle Fraser and Sadie Fraser; son, Gavin Fraser and his spouse Jeannine Kerr, and their children, Aida Fraser and Violet Fraser; and many nieces and nephews on both the Fraser and Radford sides of the family.
Nancy was born at Greenwich Hospital on Oct. 29, 1935, and passed away at Stamford Hospital. During her professional life, she worked for almost 45 years as a Registered Nurse at both institutions, particularly Greenwich Hospital where she spent many years in the maternity unit. She also worked briefly at Dumphries Hospital in Quantico, Virginia, and New York-Presbyterian Columbia University Medical Center in Manhattan. Nancy was a 1957 graduate of University of Connecticut’s Nursing program and became a licensed nurse in the same year. She was a 1953 graduate of Greenwich High School. In 1949, she graduated in a class of just 50 students from Greenwich Grammar School, as the sole town middle school was then known.
Growing up with her parents and sister in her home on Tomac Cove, and in the frequent company of maternal aunts, Angela Cuttle and Susan B. Cuttle, Nancy learned to fish, garden, swim and boat, and gained a deep appreciation for animals and the Long Island Sound. In turn, Nancy raised her 2 children, also frequent visitors to the Tomac Cove property, in this spirit of self-reliance, resourcefulness, and affection for the place. For the last three decades of her life, Nancy resumed living at her childhood property, which became the site of many holiday and family get-togethers, reaffirming memories of her parents and childhood for subsequent generations.
As an adult, Nancy was an energetic mother, walking and playing tennis and paddle tennis, a dedicated and competitive bridge-player, ballroom dancer, and puzzler, and a fan of movies and travel. Tallied with the work of raising four children and nursing jobs, Nancy’s organizational skills and management competency could be found intimidating. She possessed a disarming wit, and despite protestations of shyness, wrote and spoke beautifully. She was a popular girl and as adult with many friends, Nancy maintained an active social calendar and friendships lasting over many decades.
Nancy will be interred at Putnam Cemetery in Greenwich. The family has named Save-the-Sound (savethesound.org) as her chosen charity for donations in her memory.
