Gretchen Miller Fuggi, 85, passed away peacefully on Jan. 19, 2024, surrounded by her loving family. She was the beloved wife of William “Bill” Joseph Fuggi for over 63 married years. She was born Aug. 26, 1938, to the daughter of the late Harriet and John Miller of Westerly, Rhode Island. She was the loving mother of Gretchen Fuggi Marino, John and Juliann Fuggi of North Haven, and Kristen (Micheal) Beccaria of Fairfield. She was the dearly beloved grandmother of Kevin Fuggi, Gretchen-Miller Marino, Hope Marino, Allison Marino of North Haven, and Anthony Beccaria, Lauren Beccaria, and Grace Beccaria of Fairfield.

Gretchen was very proud of the Miller family ancestry lineage as she was a direct descendant of Roger Williams, who founded the state of Rhode Island. She moved out of her Stonington area hometown to attend Southern Connecticut State University to obtain an elementary teaching certification. She later continued to earn a master’s degree in reading and then a sixth-year degree in educational leadership administration. After that, she became an Adjunct Professor at Southern Connecticut State University in their master’s program in reading. Gretchen worked as a Reading Consultant for over 33 years, beginning her career in the towns of Branford and North Haven and ending with the city of West Haven, where she was named Teacher of the Year her last year. Gretchen also volunteered many hours as the president of the Catholic Charity League of New Haven, the Junior League of New Haven, and as an active member of Our Lady of Mount Carmel Church. She loved to write and was a weekly writer for many of the local town papers in Hamden and North Haven. She also loved to travel and visited many European countries like Germany, Switzerland, Austria, Italy, and the Caribbean beaches. She also proudly enjoyed watching her grandchildren play their sports and then attending all their academic award ceremonies.

A funeral service for her will be conducted privately with her family and friends. Memorial contributions can be made in her name to her favorite school — Sacred Heart of Jesus Preschool in North Haven, 90 Chapel Hill Road, North Haven, CT 06473. Shoreline Cremation has been entrusted with her arrangements.