Gail “GG” Powers, passed away on December 8, 2022 in Winchester, VA, at the age of 82 after battling a sudden illness. She is survived by her husband of 58 years, Donald, her children Jennifer (Riggleman), John, Edward, Nancy (Cline), eleven grandchildren, and her sisters Betsy Bourdon and Jeffie Rodgers.

Gail was born in 1940 in the Bronx, the daughter of Edward and Evelyn Griffiths, and grew up in Greenwich Connecticut as the youngest of three girls. As a child she loved playing sports and would later brag about her battered knuckles being the remnants of playing baseball (and probably fighting) with the boys growing up. She attended the University of Connecticut, following her sisters, and graduated with a degree in education, becoming an elementary school teacher.

Gail and Don married in Rockport, Texas and had their first two children while living in Corpus Christi, Texas, while Gail worked part time teaching developmentally-disabled children. Over the next fifty years, Gail was the “rock” of her family, raising her children and then her grandchildren in Penfield, NY, Oldtown, MD, and Winchester, VA. Gail was blessed with a retinue of close “friends for life,” including Linda Bess and her sisters Jeffie and Betsy, all of whom she loved and cherished, and they her. Gail provided unconditional love, and much needed stability and wisdom to all of her family and friends. To her children, she was a shining example of love, empathy, integrity, and steely toughness. To her grandchildren, who knew her as “GG,” she was an endless source of joy, enthusiasm, and creativity. And to hear her tell it, her grandchildren were the smartest, most talented children in the world.

GG loved to dance and was a talented artist. She was a passionate advocate for all just causes, had unbounded empathy for others, and could always find the humor during trying times.

The world is a poorer place without GG. She will be missed always but will remain deeply embedded in our hearts. According to GG’s wishes, there will be no planned funeral or services, but her life will be celebrated during a family gathering to be scheduled at some time during the next year. GG certainly would have appreciated your thoughts and remembrances, but no flowers or cards are necessary. GG would also have welcomed donations to the Global Down Syndrome Foundation, as well.