In Memory
Rita (Stull) Gafill
Rita Stull Gafill (86) passed away peacefully, surrounded by her family, on October 27, 2023. She was born in South Bend, Indiana, on May 23, 1937, to Mary and Clifford L. Stull.
On June 17, 1961, she married James Bruce Gafill, III, at the First Presbyterian Church of South Bend. She is survived by her husband of 62 years, her sister Susan Chick of South Bend, her daughters Maryruth (Kenneth) Malloy of Moss Beach, CA, and Elizabeth (Andrew) Dominello of Wilmette, IL, and a son, James Bruce Gafill, IV, of Ellijay, GA. She also leaves behind two grandchildren, Clifford "CJ" Dominello and Savannah Gafill, as well as beloved nieces and nephews.
She attended Monroe and Madison Elementary Schools and John Adams High School in South Bend, attended Rollins College in Winter Park, FL, and graduated with a degree in English Literature from Lake Forest College in Lake Forest, IL.
Rita will be remembered fondly and missed by many devoted friends and neighbors in and from South Bend, as well as Stuart, Florida.
Rita loved all things beautiful, gourmet cooking, the sun, ocean, boating, fishing, Notre Dame football and basketball, Right Whale Watching, and time with family and friends. She was a gifted, talented and juried artist, who drew, painted and sculpted throughout her life, after studying art at St. Mary's College and Indiana University at South Bend. Her artwork was shown in many exhibits. Her artist's eye also made her an exceptional floral and interior designer which was a lifetime love.
She gave of herself in service to, among others, the Junior League of South Bend, the Hoosier Art Patrons, the Audubon Society, the Martin County (FL) Council of Artists, the Memorial Hospital Auxiliary, and the Mental Health Board in Savannah, GA.
A devoted Christian, Rita was a member of the First Presbyterian Church of South Bend and, in recent years, attended Trinity United Methodist Church of Jensen Beach, FL.
A celebration of life will be held at a future date. In lieu of flowers, memorial gifts may be made to the Jessica June Children's Cancer Foundation in Florida, Riley Hospital for Children in Indiana or the charity of your choice.
Posted online on November 03, 2023
Published in South Bend Tribune
11/03/2023 EJS
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