A graveside committal service for Mildred H. Grindle, who passed away on March 26, 2022, will be held Friday June 3, 2022, at 10 a.m., at Fairview Cemetery, Patterson Mill Road, in Warren, with the Reverend’s Elizabeth Bailey-Mitchell and Linda Campbell-Marshall co-officiating.

Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland.

UNION — Mildred “Millie” Hartford Grindle, 89, passed away after a short illness at the Sussman House in Rockport, on Saturday, March 26, 2022.

Born July 19, 1932 in Harrington to Harry G. and Margaret (Huntley) Hartford, her family moved to South Portland during the years of World War II where she attended local schools, before they moved to Warren where she attended High School.

On August 8, 1948 she married Glendon E. Simmons and together they had one son, Wayne Russell Simmons. Following her divorce from Glendon in 1965, she married Donald D. Grindle on May 6, 1969. At the time Donald had three children: Julie, James, and Eric. On April 4, 1998, Donald passed away suddenly and Millie would eventually go on to marry Kenneth J. Orne on September 5, 1999. Kenneth passed away on December 18, 2019.

During her first marriage, Mildred, (Minnie, Millie) worked at Gray Manufacturing Company in Hartford, Connecticut, and for the former Sylvania Company in Waldoboro. She eventually attended Beal Business College in Bangor and following her graduation, she worked for the U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Bangor and San Francisco, California. After returning to Maine, she the first female employed by Stone and Webster Engineering Company at the former Maine Yankee Atomic Power Company in Wiscasset.

Following her employment at Maine Yankee, she would go on to work for the Maine State Housing Authority in Augusta, and then for the Social Security Administration in both Augusta and Rockland. Millie had a total of 25 years of U.S. Government service when she retired.

In her retirement years she worked for seven years for the New England United Methodist Conference as Secretary to then District Superintendent, Rev. Linda Campbell-Marshall.

Beginning in 2003, she and her husband Kenneth Orne spent their winters in Zephyrhills, Florida. Then, at the age of 72, Millie attained her license as an Amateur Radio Technician and became a member of the Pen Bay Amateur Radio Club.

Since 1972, and right up to her passing, Mildred was a very proud, and devoted member of the Peoples United Methodist Church in Union.

Predeceased by her parents; her husbands, Donald Grindle and Kenneth Orne; her two sisters, Sarah Butler and Ernestine Pease; she is survived by her son, Wayne R. Simmons, his wife Emily, and grandson Joshua of Manitee, Michigan; her three step-children, Julie McClarie her husband Steven and their children of Bangor, James Grindle his wife Lisa and their children of Bangor; Eric Grindle his wife June and their children of Alpharetta, Georgia; and several nieces and nephews.

A celebration of Mildred’s life will be held on Friday, April 8, 2022, at 1 p.m., at Peoples United Methodist Church, 31 Depot St., in Union with the Reverend’s Elizabeth Bailey-Mitchell and Linda Campbell-Marshall co-officiating.

For those unable to attend in person, a livestream of Mildred’s service will be available. Simply go to bchfh.com, click on Mildred’s Book of Memories, click the “Photos & Videos” tab, scroll down and then click on “Watch Webcast.” A recording of her service will be saved on her Book of Memories for those not able to attend in real time.

Mildred will be laid to rest alongside her husband Donald at Fairview Cemetery in Warren.

For those that wish, memorial donations in Mildred’s memory can be made to the Peoples United Methodist Church, PO Box 105, Union, ME 04862

To share a memory or condolence with Mildred’s family, please visit their Book of Memories at bchfh.com

Arrangements are in the care of Burpee, Carpenter & Hutchins Funeral Home, 110 Limerock Street, Rockland.