Obituary for Florence Barbara Krawczyk
Barbara Krawczyk, nee Florence Barbara Hughes, died peacefully at Tockwotton Nursing Care in East Providence, Rhode Island on December 18th, 2021. She was 91 and was born June 4th, 1930 in Westbrook, CT. She was the daughter of Nathaniel T. and Florence Hughes (Downs). She graduated from the Morgan High School in 1949, where she was voted the “Neatest” and “Best Looking” person in her class. Barbara was inspired to be a nurse by her mother, who said that her years as a nurse were the best in her life. She graduated from the Rhode Island Hospital School of Nursing in 1952, the same school her mother graduated from back in 1929.
At the hospital, Barbara met her future husband Dr. Henry J. Krawczyk. They married on June 19, 1954 and honeymooned on Cape Cod. This began a family tradition, where they vacationed on Cape Cod in Chatham Massachusetts every year for over 50 years. Barbara loved walking the beach and reading all types of books, fiction, history, art, and nature.
They moved to Boston to work at the Leahy Clinic and later returned to Providence, R.I. where they had five children. She loved being a mother and volunteered and supported Meeting Street School, The Fogarty Center, Lincoln School, and LaSalle Academy. Holidays and birthdays were festive, fun, and memorable with plenty of thoughtful gifts. She was an avid reader and typically read two newspapers a day. She loved to garden and toured gardens all over the east coast and in Europe. She used to start her day with a bicycle ride down Blackstone Boulevard and into Swan Point Cemetery. She believed in daily exercise and used a stationary bicycle into her 80’s. She was an active member of the Rhode Island Nurses Alumni Association and the American Heart Association.
She was predeceased by her husband, her parents, and her sister Jean Hughes. She is survived by her five children, Barbara A. Krawczyk, Henry J. Krawczyk Jr., Nancy A. Krawczyk Priory (Joseph) Thomas E. Krawczyk, Joseph S. Krawczyk (Sally) and three granddaughters; siblings Ruth (Richards) Adams, Joan (Robert) Graf Sr., and Nathaniel (Fran) Hughes; and numerous nieces and nephews.
The family will have a private ceremony in the spring. Anyone who wishes to remember Barbara in a special way, may donate to one of the following organizations: The American Heart Association, 1 State St UNIT 200, Providence, RI 02908, or the Blackstone Park Conservancy, P.O. Box 603141 Providence, RI 02906.
She asked that this poem by Davis S. Darnstaedt be shared when she passed:
Cast my ashes to the wind,
And let my soul go free.
Cast my ashes to the wind
And hope the best for me.
Let me drift on wind and tide
Mountain forest and ocean ‘s shore.
Cast my ashes to the wind,
That I might be with those
Who’ve gone before.
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At the hospital, Barbara met her future husband Dr. Henry J. Krawczyk. They married on June 19, 1954 and honeymooned on Cape Cod. This began a family tradition, where they vacationed on Cape Cod in Chatham Massachusetts every year for over 50 years. Barbara loved walking the beach and reading all types of books, fiction, history, art, and nature.
They moved to Boston to work at the Leahy Clinic and later returned to Providence, R.I. where they had five children. She loved being a mother and volunteered and supported Meeting Street School, The Fogarty Center, Lincoln School, and LaSalle Academy. Holidays and birthdays were festive, fun, and memorable with plenty of thoughtful gifts. She was an avid reader and typically read two newspapers a day. She loved to garden and toured gardens all over the east coast and in Europe. She used to start her day with a bicycle ride down Blackstone Boulevard and into Swan Point Cemetery. She believed in daily exercise and used a stationary bicycle into her 80’s. She was an active member of the Rhode Island Nurses Alumni Association and the American Heart Association.
She was predeceased by her husband, her parents, and her sister Jean Hughes. She is survived by her five children, Barbara A. Krawczyk, Henry J. Krawczyk Jr., Nancy A. Krawczyk Priory (Joseph) Thomas E. Krawczyk, Joseph S. Krawczyk (Sally) and three granddaughters; siblings Ruth (Richards) Adams, Joan (Robert) Graf Sr., and Nathaniel (Fran) Hughes; and numerous nieces and nephews.
The family will have a private ceremony in the spring. Anyone who wishes to remember Barbara in a special way, may donate to one of the following organizations: The American Heart Association, 1 State St UNIT 200, Providence, RI 02908, or the Blackstone Park Conservancy, P.O. Box 603141 Providence, RI 02906.
She asked that this poem by Davis S. Darnstaedt be shared when she passed:
Cast my ashes to the wind,
And let my soul go free.
Cast my ashes to the wind
And hope the best for me.
Let me drift on wind and tide
Mountain forest and ocean ‘s shore.
Cast my ashes to the wind,
That I might be with those
Who’ve gone before.
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