Mildred V. (Koehler) Stokes, 93, of East Haven, formerly of North Branford, beloved mother, grandmother, and great grandmother, died Dec. 7 at Yale-New Haven Hospital.  She was the wife of the late Henry C. Stokes. Mildred was born in New London on Jan. 14, 1918, daughter of the late Herman A. and Nellie T. Boehne Koehler.  Her family moved to West Haven, where Mildred attended Noble Street Elementary School.  She later resided in East Haven for many years before retiring to Florida. 

Mildred worked many jobs in her lifetime, and later in life she went to school to become a keypunch operator and worked in that field for a number of years at both Echlin Manufacturing in Branford and Western Electric in West Haven just prior to her retirement.  In 1997, she returned to Connecticut from Florida and resided at North Branford Senior Housing for a number of years before finally moving back to East Haven for the last two years as a resident of Laurel Woods.

In her day, Mildred enjoyed cooking and entertaining family and friends.  She told infinite stories of the trials of her youth, having grown up during the Depression and living through World War II.  However, she mostly relished her stories about the history and the existence of “Savin Rock” in West Haven.  A lifetime member of the Ladies Auxiliary of VFW Post 8294, Mildred was a member of the Loyal Order of Moose in Florida, and she did volunteer work at Humana Hospital in Florida.

She is survived by her sons, James E. Smith, Jr. of Punta Gorda, Florida, and Glenn C. Smith and his wife Sandra of East Haven; a daughter, Priscilla Smith Musco of Northford; nine grandchildren; 12 great-grandchildren; and several nieces and nephews.  She is also survived by a sister, Shirley Korik of Clinton.  She was predeceased by her daughter-in-law, Dorothy Smith, and by 10 siblings, Corinne “Cora” DeFabees, Herman A. Koehler, Jr., Gladys (Henderson) Peretta, William Koehler, Dorothy Stewart, Pearl Koehler, Madeline Koehler, Russell Koehler, Ethel Jacques, and Lillian (Gay) Gariepy.

Her funeral procession left the Keenan Funeral Home in North Branford on Dec. 10 for a mass of Christian burial at St. Monica’s Church, Northford.  Burial was in All Saints Cemetery, North Haven.  Gifts in her name may be made to the Savin Rock Museum and Learning Center, 6 Rock St., West Haven, CT  06516.