Lillian Elizabeth Goding

Arriving in the U.S. with a little knowledge of English, Lillian came to love and master the language. She became a devoted patron of the Public Library, both in Brooklyn and Rochester.  She took her children with her to the library, often multiple times a week, from the time they were infants. She read avidly, and instilled in her children a great love of reading and literature.  When she read aloud to them, her children – and later, her grandchildren – became spellbound.  Thanks to Lillian, we were introduced to Mark Twain, Leo Tolstoi, Robert Louis Stevenson, and countless other volumes, on hot summer days of childhood. Lillian was an accomplished seamstress, cook and gardener.  She loved art, and all things beautiful and above all else her husband and children.  Her home was filled with the sunny climate of her loving personality.  She cared attentively for her mother, Maria, who came to live with the family in 1967 until her death in 1993.  In subsequent years she traveled to Italy, Australia, Argentina and California, and paid much-loved visits to her grandchildren in Southborough, Massachusetts during their childhood years. Her Rochester family enjoyed delicious Sunday dinners every week at her house for 26 wonderful years. Widowed at the young age of 51, Lillian learned to drive and to live independently for another 40 years.  Her spirit was marked by immense gratitude for all that life had given her.  To the very end, Lillian was thankful, truthful and deeply respectful of others.  She loved people; she was a great listener.  We will all miss the warm atmosphere of her home, her ironic and detached sense of humor, her common sense and realism. She is predeceased by her husband of 27 years, Justin Goding.  She is survived by her children, Justin (Margaret) Goding of Southborough, Massachusetts; Christine (Michael) McMullen of Rochester; and Adrian Godina of Newport Beach, California; her grandchildren, Gregory Goding, Julian (Clare) Goding and Maria (Alex) Beecham. Her family would like to thank Lillian’s loving and dedicated caregivers who enabled her to live comfortably in her own home, the last two years of her life, to the very end:  Suzanne Kier, Karen Ortiz, Samantha Ortiz, Tammy Strong,Traci Lalor, Amanda Fitzwater, Allison Frank, Janet Echevarria, Alyssa Sprague, Aliana Rivera, Portia Read and Jennifer Mykins.